THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 

GIFT  OF 


WADSWORTH 


OR 


The  Charter  Oak 


BY 

W.   H.    GOCHER 


'The  traditions  of  a  nation  are  part  of  its  existence." 

—'Disraeli 


HARTFORD,   CONN. 

Published  by  W.  H.  GOCHER 

1904 


Copyright,    1904 

by 
William  Henry  Gocher. 


PRESS  OF  WINN  k  JUDSON 

CLEVELAND 


F 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

The  Wyllys  Mansion  and  The  Charter  Oak. Frontispiece 

The  Wadsworth  Inn 41 

Wadsworths  from  1595  to  1904 53 

Oliver  Cromwell 75 

The  Charter  Oak  in  1830 109 

Hugh  Peters 187 

William  Pendrell 143 

The  Royal  Oak  of  Boscobel 151 

Jane  Lane 159 

Charles  II 171 

John  Winthrop 205 

Charles  II  (From  the  Charter) 217 

Edward  Montague,  First  Earl  of  Sandwich  .    .    .  237 

Connecticut  Governors 259 

Sir  Edmund  Andros 275 

The  Charter  Oak  in  1847 291 

James  II 299 

Moses  Butler's  Tavern 311 

The  Wadsworth  Arms 829 

The  Charter  Oak  in  1856 385 

Weatogue  Brook  Falls 845 

Imlay's  Bridge 361 

Imlay's  Mill 373 

The  Last  Scene  .                                                        .  387 


INTRODUCTION 


INTRODUCTION 


HARTFORD 


Hartford  is  an  old  town  as  dates  run  in  Amer- 
ica. The  first  sod  was  turned  in  1636,  sixteen 
years  after  the  Pilgrims  landed  at  Plymouth  and 
six  years  after  the  Puritans  located  in  the  vicinity 
of  what  is  now  known  as  Boston.  On  May  31 
of  that  year  the  members  of  the  Rev.  Thomas 
Hooker's  church  at  Newtown,  now  known  as 
Cambridge,  having  disposed  of  their  homes  in  the 
colony  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  turned  their  faces 
towards  the  Connecticut  valley.  After  a  journey 
of  two  weeks,  which  can  now  be  made  almost  in 
as  many  hours,  this  band  of  pioneers  crossed  the 
Connecticut  River  and  located  on  the  land  that 
was  subsequently  known  as  Hartford. 

So  far  as  can  be  learned,  all  of  the  original  pro- 
prietors of  Hartford,  as  well  as  those  of  Windsor 
and  Wethersfield,  were  born  in  England  and  had 
emigrated  on  account  of  their  religious  views 
differing  from  those  which  were  being  forced  on 
the  people  by  Charles  I.  through  Laud.  Thomas 
Hooker,  the  leader  of  the  company,  had  felt  the 


12  Wadsworth 

weight  of  the  latter's  displeasure.  Being  marked 
as  a  Non-Conformist,  he  was  in  1629  silenced  at 
Chelmsford  and  in  1630  forced  to  sail  for  Holland 
to  escape  a  summons  to  appear  before  the  High 
Commission  Court.  The  ill-fated  Charles  Stuart 
was  at  the  time  carrying  out  the  threat  which  his 
father  made  at  Hampton  Court  when  he  told  the 
Puritan  divines  that  he  would  make  them  con- 
form or  he  would  harry  them  out  of  the  land,  or 
worse.  At  the  time  it  sounded  like  an  idle  boast, 
but  when  they  found  that  King  James  was  de- 
termined to  enforce  "one  doctrine,  one  discipline, 
one  religion,  in  substance  and  ceremony,"  many 
well  to  do  people,  as  well  as  artisans  and  agri- 
culturalists, who  considered  their  spiritual  wel- 
fare of  more  moment  than  their  physical  com- 
forts, fled  to  Holland  and  later  to  America. 

There  were  no  drones  among  those  who  gave 
up  home  comforts  for  faith.  All  of  them  were 
workers  and  thinkers  whose  minds  had  absorbed 
what  could  be  gathered  from  the  few  books 
within  the  reach  of  the  people  at  that  period  and 
the  lectures  which  the  Puritans  had  established 
in  all  of  their  churches.  The  Bible,  being  the 
most  accessible,  was  read  and  discussed  in  every 
home,  and  with  the  awakening  of  religious  lib- 
erty there  came  in  turn  that  germ  of  civil  liberty 
which  was  destined  to  blaze  forth  on  the  virgin 


Introduction  13 

soil  of  America.  Over  a  century  and  a  half  was 
to  roll  by,  however,  before  anyone  was  bold 
enough  to  declare  that  "all  men  are  created 
equal,"  and  that  mind,  not  birth,  is  the  foundation 
of  greatness,  but  the  hour  was  at  hand  for  it 
to  be  announced  "that  the  foundation  of  authority 
was  based  upon  the  consent  of  the  people."  That 
declaration  was  made  in  1638  in  Hartford,  the 
cradle  of  democracy,  by  Thomas  Hooker,  and 
from  it  and  other  thoughts  leading  up  to  it  came 
the  spirit  of  opposition  which  eventually  led  to 
the  severing  of  the  ties  that  bound  the  colonies  to 
the  mother  country.1 

The  first  settlement  in  Hartford  extended  from 
what  is  now  known  as  the  South  Green  to  Sen- 
tinel Hill,  where  Morgan  Street  leaves  Main 
Street,  the  majority  of  the  houses  being  along 
what  is  now  known  as  Front,  Main  and  Trumbull 
Streets,  while  others  followed  the  banks  of  the 
Little  River  to  the  foot  of  Lord's,  now  known  as 
Asylum  Hill.  Cut  off  from  communication  with 
the  outside  world  except  by  trails  through  the 
forest  or  by  the  river,  these  English  subjects  on 
American  soil  began  to  think  and  act  for  them- 

1  The  birthplace  of  American  democracy  is  Hartford. 
Government  "of  the  people,  by  the  people,  and  for  the 
people"  first  took  shape  in  Connecticut.  The  American 
form  of  commonwealth  originated  here. — Johnson's 
Connecticut. 


14  Wadsworth 

selves.  Untrammeled  by  the  restraints  of  feudal 
tenure  which  still  oppressed  all  of  the  working 
plasses  in  the  old  country,  the  founders  of  Hart- 
ford, Windsor  and  Wethersfield  devised  a  system 
of  their  own  and  began  to  make  history,  in  a 
humble  manner  it  is  true,  but  on  a  plan  which 
in  time  attracted  the  attention  of  the  world. 
Without  a  charter  to  establish  their  rights  to  the 
land  upon  which  they  built  their  homes  or  a  basis 
for  civil  authority,  they  went  to  the  other  extreme 
and  placed  the  foundation  of  authority  in  the 
people  and  upon  that  cornerstone  adopted  a  con- 
stitution which  created  a  government.1  Firm  in 
their  faith,  these  men  and  those  who  were  at  a 
later  date  associated  with  them,  made  self-reliant 
and  assertive  by  adversity  and  contentions  with 
the  neighboring  colonies,  at  a  later  date  drafted 
a  charter  which  received  royal  sanction  and  under 
which  Connecticut  conducted  its  government 

1  It  was  the  first  written  constitution  known  to  his- 
tory that  created  a  government. — Fiske. 

The  whole  constitution  was  that  of  an  independent 
state.  It  continued  in  force,  with  very  little  alteration, 
a  hundred  and  eight  years. — Palfry's  History  of  New 
England. 

Alone  of  the  thirteen  colonies,  Connecticut  entered 
into  the  War  of  the  Revolution  with  her  governor  and 
council  at  her  head  under  the  constitution  of  her  royal 
charter. — Leonard  Wolsey  Bacon. 


Introduction  15 

until  1818,  and  many  features  of  which  are  still 
reflected  in  its  constitution.1 

Hinman  states  that  there  never  was  any  com- 
munication between  the  Connecticut  colony  and 
the  English  government  from  the  date  of  settle- 
ment until  after  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  appeared  at 
Whitehall  in  1662  and  procured  the  Charter  from 
Charles  II.  Prior  to  that  time  the  founders  of 
the  three  river  towns  and  the  others  which  were 
established  under  orders  from  the  General  Court 
based  their  claims  to  the  soil  by  purchase  from 
the  Indians  and  an  agreement  with  George  Fen- 
wick,  who  sold  them  the  Saybrook  fort  and  the 
land  on  the  river.  A  promise  that  Fenwick  failed 
to  keep  also  went  with  the  transfer,  but  in  time 
it  was  used  not  only  as  a  means  of  recovering  a 
portion  of  the  money  spent  in  the  river  purchase, 
but  also  in  pressing  the  colony's  claim  for  a  char- 
ter at  Whitehall,  the  petition  or  one  of  the  peti- 
tions presented  by  Winthrop  to  King  Charles  II 
being  not  for  a  new  charter,  which  might  have 
been  weakened  by  rights  already  granted  by  the 
crown,  but  for  a  renewal  of  the  Warwick  patent, 

1  From  this  seed  sprang  the  constitution  of  Connec- 
ticut, first  in  the  series  of  written  American  constitu- 
tions framed  by  the  people  for  the  people.  *  *  * 
Nearly  two  centuries  have  elapsed  *  *  *  but  the 
people  of  Connecticut  have  found  no  reason  to  deviate 
from  the  government  established  by  their  fathers. — 
Bancroft's  History  of  United  States. 


16  Wadsworth 

then  held  by  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  the  sole  surviv- 
ing patentee,  and  who  was  heartily  in  sympathy 
with  the  proposed  measure,  although  he  did  not 
live  to  see  the  charter  pass  the  seals.  All  of  this 
is,  or  in  time  will  be,  set  forth  in  the  pages  of 
State  histories,  a  number  of  changes  being  made 
necessary  on  account  of  recent  discoveries  in  cor- 
respondence preserved  in  the  Bodleian  library, 
while  considerable  space  is  devoted  to  the  claims 
of  the  Dutch  and  the  House  of  Hope,  a  trading 
post  which  was,  according  to  Smith's  History  of 
New  York,  established  in  1623, — possibly  a  typo- 
graphical error — on  what  is  now  known  as  Dutch 
Point. 

The  members  of  Hooker's  colony  ignored  the 
claims  of  the  New  Amsterdam  traders  and  sur- 
rounded their  low  lying  acres  on  the  river  front 
with  a  thriving  colony.  The  feeling  between 
them  was  not  very  friendly  and  on  one  or  two 
occasions  they  came  to  blows,  while  Peter  Stuy- 
vesant  at  a  later  date  travelled  from  New  Am- 
sterdam (New  York)  to  Hartford  to  assist  his 
countrymen  in  retaining  their  foothold  on  the 
Connecticut.  Finding  that  none  of  his  claims 
would  be  allowed,  the  peppery  governor  returned 
to  Manhattan,  leaving  the  disposal  of  his  coun- 
trymen's affairs  in  the  hands  of  two  Englishmen. 
They  did  not  make  a  very  favorable  report.  The 


Introduction  17 

Dutch  were,  however,  permitted  to  remain  with- 
in bounds  until  1653,  when  England  and  Holland 
were  at  war.  In  that  year  Captain  John  Under- 
hill,  a  soldier  of  fortune,  bearing  a  commission 
from  the  Providence  Plantations,  marched  to 
Hartford  and  seized  the  House  of  Hope  for  Eng- 
land. The  General  Court  of  Connecticut  then 
sequestered  the  Dutch  property  in  Hartford  and 
when  peace  was  declared  the  traders  abandoned 
the  place  and  returned  to  New  Amsterdam.  All 
that  now  remains  to  revive  memories  of  the 
first  settlers  in  Hartford  is  the  name  Dutch  Point 
and  the  names  of  a  few  streets  in  that  section  of 
the  city. 

On  January  14,  1638-9,  the  inhabitants  and  resi- 
dents of  Windsor,  Hartford  and  Wethersfield 
assembled  in  the  meeting  house  in  Hartford,  the 
building  being  located  on  what  is  now  known  as 
the  Public  Square  and  adopted  what  is  known  as 
the  Fundamental  Orders  or  "Constitution  of 
1638-9."  It  is  surmised,  and  that  is  the  strongest 
word  that  can  be  used,  that  this  constitution  was 
the  joint  work  of  Thomas  Hooker,  whose  teach- 
ings of  civil  liberty  are  reflected  in  it,  Roger  Lud- 
low,  a  skillful  lawyer  who  held  office  in  Massa- 
chusetts, Connecticut  and  Ireland,  and  John 
Haynes,  who  served  as  Governor  of  Massachu- 
setts before  he  joined  the  colony  of  Connecticut, 


18  Wadsworttt 

where  like  honors  were  conferred  upon  him.    The 
following  is  a  copy  of  the  constitution  as  adopted : 

CONSTITUTION   OF   1638-9. 


"Forasmuch  as  it  hath  pleased  the  Almighty  God, 
by  the  wise  disposition  of  His  divine  providence,  so  to 
order  and  dispose  of  things,  that  we  the  inhabitants 
and  residents  of  Windsor,  Hartford  and  Weathersfield, 
are  now  cohabiting,  and  dwelling  in  and  uppon  the  river 
of  Conneticutt,  and  the  lands  thereunto  adjoining,  and 
well  knowing  when  a  people  are  gathered  together,  the 
word  of  God  requires,  that  to  meinteine  the  peace  and 
union  of  such  a  people,  there  should  bee  an  orderly 
and  decent  governement  established  according  to  God, 
to  order  and  dispose  of  the  affaires  of  the  people  at  all 
seasons,  as  occasion  shall  require;  doe  therefore  asso- 
ciate and  conjoine  ourselves  to  bee  as  one  publique 
STATE  or  COMMONWEALTH;  and  doe  for  our- 
selves and  our  successors,  and  such  as  shall  bee  ad- 
joined to  us  at  any  time  hereafter,  enter  into  combina- 
tion and  confederation  together,  to  meinteine  and  pre- 
serve the  libberty  and  purity  of  the  Gospell  of  our 
Lord  Jesus,  which  we  now  profess,  as  also  the  disci- 
pline of  the  churches,  which,  according  to  the  truth  of 
the  said  Gospell,  is  now  practiced  amongst  us;  as  allso 
in  our  civill  affaires  to  be  guided  and  governed  accord- 
ing to  such  lawes,  rules,  orders,  and  decrees,  as  shall 
bee  made,  ordered,  and  decreed,  as  followeth: 

i.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  That  there 
shall  bee  yearly  two  Generall  Assembly's  or  Courts, 
the  one  the  second  Thursday  in  Aprill,  the  other  the 
second  Thursday  in  September  following:  The  first 


Introduction  19 

shall  bee  called  the  Courte  of  Election,  wherein  shall 
be  yearely  chosen,  from  time  to  time,  so  many  magis- 
trates and  other  publique  officers,  as  shall  bee  found 
requisite,  whereof  one  to  be  chosen  Governor  for  the 
yeare  ensuing,  and  untill  another  bee  chosen,  and  no 
other  magistrate  to  bee  chosen  for  more  then  one 
yeare;  provided  always,  there  bee  six  chosen  besides 
the  Governor,  which  being  chosen  and  sworne  accord- 
ing to  an  oath  recorded  for  that  purpose,  shall  have 
power  to  administer  justice  according  to  the  lawes  here 
established,  and  for  want  thereof,  according  to  the  rule 
of  the  word  of  God;  which  choyce  shall  bee  made  by 
all  that  are  admitted  Freemen,  and  have  taken  the 
oath  of  fidelity,  and  do  cohabit  within  this  jurissdiction, 
having  beene  admitted  inhabitants  by  the  major  parte 
of  the  town  where  they  live  or  the  major  parte  of  such 
as  shall  bee  then  present. 

2.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  That  the 
Election  of  the  aforesaid  magistrate  shall  bee  on  this 
manner;  every  person  present  and  qualified  for 
choyce,  shall  bring  in  (to  the  persons  deputed  to  re- 
ceive them)  one  single  paper,  with  the  name  of  him 
written  in  it  whom  he  desires  to  have  Governor,  and 
hee  that  hath  the  greatest  number  of  papers  shall  be« 
Governor  for  that  yeare:  And  the  rest  of  the  Magis- 
trates or  publique  officer,  to  be  chosen  in  this  manner; 
the  Secretary  for  the  time  being,  shall  first  read  the 
names  of  all  that  are  to  bee  put  to  choyce,  and  then 
shall  severally  nominate  them  distinctly,  and  every 
one  that  would  have  the  person  nominated  to  bee 
chosen,  shall  bring  in  one  single  paper  written  uppon, 
and  hee  that  would  not  have  him  chosen,  shall  bring 
in  a  blanke,  and  every  one  that  hath  more  written  pa- 


20  Wadswortti 

pers  than  blanks,  shall  be  a  magistrate  for  that  yeare, 
which  papers  shall  bee  received  and  told  by  one  or 
more  that  shall  bee  then  chosen,  by  the  Courte,  and 
sworn  to  bee  faithfull  therein;  but  in  case  there 
should  not  bee  six  persons  as  aforesaid,  besides  the 
Governor,  out  of  those  which  are  nominated,  then  hee 
or  they  which  have  the  most  written  papers,  shall  bee  a 
Magistrate  or  Magistrates  for  the  ensuing  yeare,  to 
make  up  the  aforesaid  number. 

3.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced,  and  decreed,  That  the 
Secretary  shall  not  nominate  any  person,  nor  shall  any 
person  bee   chosen  newly  into   the   Magistracy,   which 
was  not  propounded   in   some   General   Courte  before, 
to  bee  nominated  the  next  election:     And  to  that  end, 
it  shall  be  lawfull  for  each  of  the  Townes   aforesaid, 
by  theire  Deputies,  to  nominate  any  two  whoe  they  con- 
ceive  fitt  to   be   put  to  election,  and   the  Courte  may 
add  so  many  more  as  they  judge  requisite. 

4.  It   is  ordered,   sentenced  and  decreed,  That  no 
person  bee  chosen  Governor  above  once  in  two  years, 
and  that  the  Governor  bee  always  a  member  of  some 
approved    congregation,    and    formerly   of    the    magis- 
tracy, within  this  Jurissdiction,  and  all  the  Magistrates, 
ffreemen  of  this   Commonwealth;  and  that  no   Magis- 
trate or  other  publique  Officer,  shall  execute  any  parte 
of  his  or  theire  office  before  they  are  severally  sworne, 
which  shall  bee  done  in  the  face  of  the  Courte,  if  they 
bee  present,  and  in  case  of  absence,  by  some  deputed 
for  that  purpose. 

5.  It   is   ordered,   sentenced   and   decreed,   That   to 
the  aforesaid  Courte  of  Election,  the  severall  Townes 
shall  send  theire  Deputyes,  and  when  the  Elections  are 
ended  they  may  proceed  in  any  publique  service,  as  at 


Introduction  21 

other  Courtes;  allso,  the  other  Generall  Courte  in  Sep- 
tember, shall  bee  for  making  of  lawes  and  any  other 
publique  occassion,  which  concerns  the  good  of  the 
Commonwealth. 

6.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced,  and  decreed,  That  the 
Governor  shall,  either  by  himselfe  or  by  the  Secretary, 
send  out  summons  to  the  Constables  of  every  Towne, 
for  the  calling  of  these  two  standing  Courts,  one  month 
at  least  before  theire  severall  times;  And  allso,  if  the 
Governor  and  the  greatest  parte  of  the  magistrates  see 
cause,  uppon  any  speciall  occasion,  to  call  a  Generall 
Courte,  they  may  give  order  to  the  Secretary  so  to  doe, 
within  fourteene  dayes  warning,  and  if  urgent  necessity 
so    require,    upon    a    shorter    notice,    giving    sufficient 
grounds  for  it,  to  the  Deputys,  when  they  meete,  or 
else,  bee  questioned  for  the  same;  and  if  the  Governor 
and  major  parte  of  the  Magistrates,  shall  either  neg- 
lect or  refuse,  to  call  the  two  Generall  standing  Courts, 
or  either  of  them;  as  allso,  at  other  times,  when  the 
occassions  of  the  Commonwealth  require;  the  Freemen 
thereof,  or  the  major  parte  of  them,  shall  petition  to 
them  so  to  doe,  if  then  it  bee   either  denied  or  neg- 
lected, the  said  Freemen  or  the  major  parte  of  them, 
shall  have  power  to  give  order  to  the  Constables  of  the 
severall  Townes  to  doe  the  same,  and  so  many  meete 
together  and   choose  to  themselves  a   moderator,  and 
may  proceed  to  doe  any  act  of  power  which  any  other 
Generall    Courte  may. 

7.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  That  after 
there  are  warrants  given  out  for  any  of  the  said  Gen- 
erall   Courts,  the     Constable    or    Constables    of    each 
Towne  shall  forthwith  give  notice  distinctly  to  the  in- 
habitants of  the  same,  in  some  publique  Assembly,  or 


22  Wadsworth 

by  going  or  sending  from  howse  to  howse,  that  at  a 
place  and  time,  by  him  or  them  limited  and  sett,  they 
meete  and  assemble  themselves  together,  to  elect  and 
chose  certaine  Deputies  to  bee  at  the  Generall  Courte 
then  following,  to  agitate  the  affaires  of  the  Common- 
wealth; which  said  Deputies,  shall  bee  chosen  by  all 
that  are  admitted  inhabitants  in  the  severall  towns 
and  have  taken  the  oath  of  fidelity:  provided,  that  none 
bee  chosen  a  Deputye  for  any  Generall  Courte  which 
is  not  a  Freeman  of  this  Commonwealth:  The  afore- 
said Deputyes  shall  bee  chosen  in  manner  following: 
Every  person  that  is  present  and  qualified  as  before 
expressed,  shall  bring  the  names  of  such  written  in 
severall  papers,  as  they  desire  to  have  chosen,  for  that 
employment;  and  these  three  or  foure,  more  or  less, 
being  the  number  agreed  on  to  be  chosen,  for  that 
time,  that  have  greatest  number  of  papers  written  for 
them,  shall  bee  Deputyes  for  that  Courte;  whose 
names  shall  be  indorsed  on  the  backside  of  the  war- 
rant and  returned  into  the  Courte,  with  the  Constable 
or  Constables  hand  to  the  same. 

8.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  That 
Wyndsor,  Hartford  and  Weathersfield,  shall  have  pow- 
er, each  Towne,  to  send  foure  of  theire  Freemen  as 
theire  Deputyes,  to  every  Generall  Courte,  and  what- 
soever other  Townes  shall  bee  hereafter  added  to  this 
Jurisdiction,  they  shall  send  so  many  Deputyes,  as  the 
Courte  shall  judge  meete:  a  reasonable  proportion  to 
the  number  of  Freemen,  that  are  in  the  said  Towns, 
being  to  bee  attended  therein;  which  Deputys  shall 
have  the  power  of  the  whole  Towne,  to  give  theire 
voates  and  allowance  to  all  such  lawes  and  orders,  as 
may  bee  for  the  publique  good,  and  unto  which  the 


Introduction  23 

said  Towns  are  to  bee  bound;  And  it  is  allso  ordered, 
that  if  any  Deputyes  shall  be  absent  uppon  such  occas- 
sions,  as  Governor  for  the  time  being,  shall  approve  of, 
or  by  the  Providence  of  God,  shall  decease  this  life 
within  the  adjournment  of  any  Courte,  that  it  shall  bee 
at  the  libertye  of  the  Governor  to  send  forth  a  war- 
rant, in  such  case,  for  supply  thereof  uppon  reasonable 
warning. 

9.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced,  and  decreed,  That  the 
Deputyes  thus  chosen,  shall  have  power  and  liberty,  to 
appoint  a  time  and  place  of  meeting  together,  before 
any  Generall  Courte,  to  advise  and  consulte  of  all  such 
thinges  as  may  concerne  the  good  of  the  publique;  as 
allso   to   examine   theire   owne    Elections,   whether   ac- 
cording to  the  order;  and  if  they  or  the  greatest  parte 
of  them,  finde  any  election  to  be  illegall,  they  may  se- 
clude such  for  present,  from  theire  meetinge,  and  re- 
turne  the  same  and  theire  reasons  to  the  Courte;  and 
if  it  proove  true,  the   Courte  may  fyne  the  party  or 
partyes  so  intruding,  and  the  Towne  if  they  see  cause, 
and  give  out  a  warrant  to  goe  to  a  new  election  in  a 
legall  way,  either  in  parte  or  in  whole.    Allso  the  said 
Deputyes  shall  have  power  to  fyne  any  that  shall  bee 
disorderly  at  theire  meeting,  or  for  not  coming  in  due 
time  or  place,  according  to  appointment,  and  they  may 
returne  the  said  fyne  into  the  Courte,  if  it  bee  refused 
to  bee  paid,  and  the  Treasurer  to  take  notice  of  it,  and 
to  estreite  or  levye  as  hee  doth  other  fynes. 

10.  It  is  ordered,  sentenced  and  decreed,  That  every 
generall  Courte  (except  such  as  through  neglect  of  the 
Governor   and  the   greatest  parte   of   Magistrates,   the 
Freemen   themselves    doe    call,)    shall    consiste   of   the 
Governor  or  some  one  chosen  to  moderate  the  Courte, 


24  Wadswotth 

and  foure  other  Magistrates  at  least,  with  the  major 
parte  of  the  Deputyes  of  the  several  Towns  legally 
chosen,  and  in  case  the  Freemen  or  the  major  parte 
of  them,  through  neglect  or  refusall  of  the  Governor 
and  major  parte  of  the  Magistrates,  shall  call  a  Courte, 
it  shall  consiste  of  the  major  parte  of  Freemen,  that 
are  present,  or  theire  Deputyes,  with  a  moderator 
chosen  by  them,  in  which  said  Generall  Courts,  shall 
consiste  the  Supreme  powere  of  the  Commonwealth, 
and  they  onely  shall  have  power  to  make  lawes  and 
repeale  them,  to  graunt  levyes,  to  admitt  of  Freemen, 
dispose  of  lands  undisposed  of,  to  severall  Towns  or 
persons;  and  allso  shall  have  power  to  call  either 
Courte  or  Magistrate,  or  any  other  person  whatsoever 
into  question,  for  any  misdemeanor,  and  may  for  such 
cause,  displace,  or  deale  otherwise,  according  to  the 
nature  of  the  offence;  and  allso  may  deale  in  any  other 
matter  that  concerns  the  good  of  this  Commonwealth, 
except  election  of  Magistrates,  which  shall  bee  done  by 
the  whole  body  of  Freemen;  in  which  Courts  the  Gov- 
ernor or  Moderator  shall  have  the  power  to  order  the 
Courte,  to  give  libbertye  of  Speech,  and  silence  un- 
reasonable and  disorderly  speaking,  to  put  all  things 
to  voate,  and  in  case  the  voate  bee  equall,  to  have  the 
casting  voice:  But  none  of  these  courts  shall  be  ad- 
journed or  dissolved  without  the  consent  of  the  major 
parte  of  the  Courte.  Provided,  notwithstanding,  that 
the  Governor  or  Deputy  Governor,  with  two  Magis- 
trates shall  have  power  to  keepe  a  Particular  Courte 
according  to  the  lawes  established;  And  in  case  the 
Governor  or  Deputy  Governor  bee  absent,  or  some  way 
or  other  incapable  either  to  sitt  or  to  bee  present;  if 
three  Magistrates  meete  and  chuse  one  of  themselves 
to  bee  a  Moderator,  they  may  keepe  a  Perticular 


Introduction  25 

Courte,  which  to  all  ends  and  purposes  shall  bee 
deemed  as  legall  as  though  the  Governor  or  Deputy 
did  sitt  in  Courte. 

11.  It    is    ordered,    sentenced,    and    decreed,    That 
when  any  Generall  Courte,  upon  the  occassions  of  the 
Commonwealth,    have    agreed    uppon    any    summ    or 
summs    of    monye,    to    be    levyed    uppon    the    severall 
Townes  within  this  Jurissdiction,  that  a  Committee  bee 
chosen,  to  sett  out  and  appoint  what  shall  bee  the  pro- 
portion of  every  Towne  to  pay  of  the  said  levye;  Pro- 
vided the  Comittee  bee  made  up  of  an  equall  number 
out  of  each  Towne. 

The  eleven  preceding  sections  were  voted  or  en- 
acted at  a  General  Court,  held  January  I4th, 
1638-9,  and  the  following  provision  was  added  at 
the  revision  in  1650: 

Forasmuch  as  the  free  fruition  of  such  libberties, 
immunities,  priviledges,  as  humanity,  civility,  and 
Christianity  call  for,  as  due  to  every  man  in  his  place 
and  proportion,  without  impeachment  and  infringe- 
ment, hath  ever  beene  and  ever  will  bee  the  tranquility 
and  stability  of  Churches  and  Commonwealths;  and  the 
denyall  or  deprivall  thereof,  the  disturbance,  if  not 
ruine  of  both: 

12.  It   is   thereof  ordered  by  this  Courte,  and  au- 
thority thereof,  That  no  man's  life  shall  bee  taken  away; 
no  man's   honor   or   good   name   shall   be   stained;   no 
man's  person  shall  bee  arrested,  restreined,  bannished, 
dismembred,  nor  any  way  punished;  no  man  shall  be 
deprived  of  his  wife  or  children;  no  man's  goods  or  es- 
tate shall  bee  taken  away  from  him  nor  any  ways  in- 
dammaged,    under    colour   of   law,    or    countenance    of 


26  Wadsworth 

authority;  unless  it  bee  by  the  vertue  or  equity  of  some 
express  law  of  the  Country  warranting  the  same,  es- 
tablished by  a  Generall  Courte  and  sufficiently  pub- 
lished, or  in  case  of  the  defect  of  a  law,  in  any  per- 
ticular  case,  by  the  word  of  God." 

This  was  the  first  step  towards  a  government 
by  the  people  under  a  written  constitution,1  and 
if  this  instrument  was  not  the  joint  production 
of  Thomas  Hooker,  John  Haynes  and  Roger 
Ludlow,  many  authorities  attributing  it  to  the 
last  named  on  account  of  his  legal  training,2  it 
reflected  their  sentiments,  and  they  were  also 
instrumental  in  having  it  presented  and  adopted 
by  the  inhabitants  of  the  three  river  towns. 

1  The  eleven  fundamental  orders  of  Connecticut, 
with  their  preamble,  presents  the  first  examples  in  his- 
tory of  a  written  constitution. — Greene's  History  of 
English  People. 

This  constitution  defined  the  laws,  rules  and  regula- 
tions of  a  government  created  by  the  people. — Tarbox's 
Organization  of  Civil  Government. 

The  oldest  truly  political  constitution  in  America  is 
the  instrument  called  the  Fundamental  Orders  of  Con- 
necticut passed  by  the  inhabitants  of  Windsor,  Hart- 
ford and  Wethersfield  in  1638-9. — Bryce's  American 
Commonwealth. 

This  remarkable  document  gave  to  Connecticut  the 
pre-eminent  place  in  constitutional  history.*  *  *  It 
was  the  constitution  of  an  independent  state,  a  distinct 
organic  law  constituting  a  government  and  defining  its 
powers. — Brinley  in  Reprint  Laws  of  1673. 

'"I  cannot  help  regarding  it  his  (Ludlow's)  work. 
The  phraseology  is  his;  it  breathes  his  spirit." — Hollis- 
ter's  History  of  Connecticut. 


Introduction  27 

THOMAS  HOOKER,  Preacher 


Thomas  Hooker,  the  founder  of  Hartford,  was 
born  in  1586,  at  Marfield  in  the  county  of  Leices- 
ter, England.  Elizabeth,  the  last  of  the  Tudor 
sovereigns,  was  then  on  the  throne,  her  death 
being  recorded  while  the  future  divine  was  attend- 
ing school  at  Market  Bosworth,  which  was  about 
twenty-five  miles  from  his  native  place  and  close 
to  Bosworth  Field  where  Henry,  Earl  of  Rich- 
mond, defeated  and  killed  Richard  III.  When 
Thomas  Hooker  arrived  at  Cambridge  University 
in  1604,  the  sovereignty  of  England  and  Scotland 
was  vested  in  the  person  of  James  I,  son  of  Mary 
Queen  of  Scots.  He  entered  Queen's  College  as 
a  sizar,  but  was  subsequently  transferred  to 
Emanuel,  where  he  remained  until  1*618.  During 
Hooker's  residence  Peter  Bulkeley,  John  Cotton, 
John  Wilson,  Francis  Higginson,  Nathaniel 
Ward  and  several  others  who  were  in  one  way  or 
another  associated  with  him  in  his  subsequent 
career  in  New  England,  were  in  Cambridge  and 
were  in  all  probability  numbered  among  his 
acquaintances. 

Thomas  Hooker's  ministry  began  with  a  rector- 
ship at  Esher  in  Surrey.  He  remained  there  until 
1626,  when  an  invitation  to  act  as  lecturer  at 
Chelmsford  in  Essex  was  accepted.  Being 


28  Wadsworth 

silenced  for  non-conformity  in  1629,  he  retired 
to  Little  Braddock,  where  he  kept  a  school,  one 
of  his  assistants  being  John  Elliot,  who  was  after- 
wards known  in  America  as  the  Apostle  to  the 
Indians.  Archbishop  Laud,  however,  did  not  for- 
get the  Chelmsford  lecturer  and  on  July  10,  1630, 
Thomas  Hooker  was  cited  to  appear  before  the 
High  Commission  Court.  On  the  advice  of 
friends  he  fled  to  Holland  where  he  remained  un- 
til 1633,  when  upon  the  invitation  of  a  number  of 
the  members  of  his  former  congregation,  who 
had  emigrated  and  located  at  Newtown,  Massa- 
chusetts, Thomas  Hooker  sailed  with  two  hun- 
dred others  for  America  in  the  Griffen.  John 
Haynes,  Samuel  Stone  and  John  Cotton  were  in 
the  same  vessel,  which  was  two  months  making 
the  voyage.  Cotton  located  in  Boston,  while 
Hooker  and  Stone  passed  on  to  their  friends  at 
Newtown.  Their  arrival  was  a  source  of  pro- 
found rejoicing,  the  people  saying  that  "their 
great  necessities  were  now  supplied,  for  they  had 
Cotton  for  their  clothing,  Hooker  for  their  fish- 
ing and  Stone  for  their  building." 

During  the  early  days  of  June,  1636,  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Newtown  followed  their  leader  through 
the  forest  to  the  present  site  of  Hartford.  For  a 
year  the  government  of  the  colony  was  conducted 
under  an  order  of  the  Massachusetts  General 


Introduction  29 

Court,  Agawam  (Springfield)  being  included 
with  Windsor,  Hartford  and  Wethersfield.  In 
1637  magistrates  appointed  by  the  people  took 
charge  of  the  affairs  of  the  colony  and  they  re- 
mained in  control  until  the  Constitution  of  1638-9 
was  adopted.  In  the  interval  Thomas  Hooker, 
firm  in  the  belief  that  in  public  measures  all  of 
the  people  could  not  go  wrong,  began  to  promul- 
gate the  doctrine  which  was  in  time  reflected  in 
the  "Fundamental  Orders."1  That  he  spoke 
plainly  and  to  the  point  is  evidenced  by  the  fol- 
lowing notes  taken  from  a  lecture  delivered  be- 
fore the  General  Court  May  31,  1638. 

Doctrine:  That  the  choice  of  the  public  magistrate 
belongs  unto  the  people. 
They  who  have  the  power  to  appoint  of- 
ficers and  magistrates,  it  is  in  their  pow- 
er, also,  to  set  the  bounds  and  limitations 
of  the  power  and  place  unto  which  they 
have  called  them. 

1  It  is  on  the  banks  of  the  Connecticut,  under  the 
mighty  preaching  of  Thomas  Hooker  and  in  the  con- 
stitution to  which  he  gave  life,  if  not  form,  that  we 
draw  the  first  breath  of  that  atmosphere  which  is  now 
so  familiar  to  us. — Johnson's  Connecticut. 

It  marked  the  beginning  of  American  democracy, 
of  which  Thomas  Hooker  deserves,  more  than  any  oth- 
er man,  to  be  called  the  father. — Fiske's  Beginning  of 
New  England. 

The  man  who  first  visioned  and  did  much  to  make 
possible  our  American  democracy. — Elliott's  History  of 
New  England. 


30  Wadsworth 

Reasons:  Because  the  foundation  of  authority  is 
laid  in  the  free  consent  of  the  people. 
Because  by  a  free  choice,  the  hearts  of  the 
people  will  be  more  inclined  to  the  love 
of  the  persons  chosen  and  more  ready  to 
yield  obedience. 

The  above  are  the  first  recorded  utterances  on 
the  broad  doctrine  of  democracy  in  America. 
They  were  taken  down  in  short  hand  in  a  note 
book  now  in  the  possession  of  the  Connecticut 
Historical  Society,  by  Henry  Walcott  of  Windsor 
and  deciphered  by  J.  Hammond  Trumbull. 

At  this  date  it  is  difficult  to  imagine  the  su- 
preme courage  required  to  enunciate  such  ideas 
in  1638  when  Charles  I  was  ruling  England  with- 
out a  Parliament,  and  although  he  did  not  know 
it,  plunging  headlong  into  a  sea  of  troubles  which 
cost  him  a  throne  and  his  head.  But  at  the  same 
time  it  must  be  remembered  that  they  were  pre- 
sented by  a  man  to  men  who  had  faced  death 
in  every  form  in  the  wilderness,  and  men  inured 
to  danger  have  little  hesitation  in  expressing  their 
opinions.  The  fear  of  punishment  was  the  last 
thought  that  came  to  them.  It  was  enough  if 
they  believed,  and  had  it  come  to  an  issue  be- 
tween them  and  Laud,  the  Archbishop's  "You 
shall  not"  would  have  been  answered  "We  shall." 

During  the  balance  of  his  life  Thomas  Hooker 
took  an  active  interest  in  the  civil  as  well  as  the 


Introduction  31 

religious  affairs  of  Connecticut  and  assisted  Gov- 
ernor Haynes  in  bringing  about  the  confederation 
of  the  colonies  of  New  England.  He  died  in 
Hartford  in  1647  and  was  buried  in  the  First 
Church  burying  ground,  corner  of  Main  and  Gold 
Streets. 


ROGER  LUDLOW.  Lawyer 


Roger  Ludlow  stands  second  only  to  Hooker  in 
founding  the  colony  of  Connecticut  and  second 
only  to  him  from  the  fact  that  the  illustrious 
divine  in  a  measure  inaugurated  the  movement 
which  gave  Ludlow  an  opportunity  to  demon- 
strate his  abilities.  At  a  later  date  Hooker  also 
taught  the  democratic  principles  that  were 
subsequently  reflected  in  the  constitution,  which 
with  the  knowledge  of  the  work  that  Ludlow 
did  for  the  colony  cannot  be  attributed  to  any 
other  hand.  Hooker  inspired  and  Ludlow  wrote 
the  constitution.1 

1  The  document  bears  intrinsic  evidence  of  a  legal 
skill  and  phraseology  which,  when  compared  with  Lud- 
low's  Code  of  1650,  seems  to  prove  that,  whatsoever's 
advice  he  had,  no  other  hand  but  his  drew  the  first  con- 
stitution of  Connecticut. — Schenck's  History  of  Fairfield. 

He  rendered  most  essential  services,  was  a  principal 
in  framing  its  original  civil  constitution. — Trumbull's 
History  of  Connecticut. 

The    authorship    of   it    was    generally    attributed    to 


32  Wadsworth 

A  biographical  sketch  of  Roger  Ludlow  shows 
that  he  was  born  in  England  in  1590,  educated 
at  Baloil  College,  Oxford,  and  admitted  as  a 
student  at  the  Queen's  Temple  in  1612.  He  first 
became  interested  in  colonial  affairs  in  1629, 
when  he  was  chosen  assistant  in  a  company  which 
had  procured  the  charter  of  "The  Governor  and 
Company  of  Massachusetts  Bay  in  New  Eng- 
land" from  Charles  I.  His  associates  included 
Lord  Warwick,  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  Winthrop 
and  Vane.  At  this  time  his  brother-in-law,  John 
Endicott,  was  interested  in  the  Dorchester  Com- 
pany and  was  in  New  England  founding  a  settle- 
ment at  Salem. 

In  the  spring  of  1630  Roger  Ludlow  sailed  for 
America,  one  of  his  companions  on  the  voyage 
being  Captain  John  Mason,1  a  soldier  of  renown, 

Roger  Ludlow. — Brinley's  Reprint  of  Laws,  of  1673. 

He  was  the  principal  framer  of  the  constitution  of 
1638-9. — Day's  Notes. 

1  John  Mason  was  born  in  1600.  He  entered  the 
army  at  an  early  age  and  served  with  distinction  under 
Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  in  the  Netherlands.  He  came  to 
America  in  1630  and  settled  at  Dorchester  where  he 
remained  until  1636,  when  he  removed  to  Windsor.  In 
1646  he  removed  to  Saybrook  and  in  1659  to  Norwich. 
John  Mason  was  an  assistant  from  1642  to  1659,  deputy 
governor  of  Connecticut  1660  to  1668,  and  major  gen- 
eral of  Connecticut  1661  to  1669.  He  died  at  Norwich 
in  1672.  While  the  struggle  between  Charles  I.  and 
the  Long  Parliament  was  in  progress,  Mason  was  re- 
quested to  return  to  England  and  enter  the  parliamen- 
tary army.  He  declined. 


Introduction  33 

who  had  served  under  Sir  Thomas  Fairfax  in  the 
Netherlands  and  who  afterwards  accompanied 
Ludlow  to  Windsor  and  led  the  colonial  troops 
in  the  Pequot  war.  Upon  landing  in  New  Eng- 
land, Ludlow  located  at  Dorchester,  where  he 
remained  for  five  years.  During  that  period  he 
was  chosen  magistrate  in  the  Court  of  Assistants 
and  was  also  elected  Deputy  Governor  of  the 
Colony.  In  1633  he  was  a  candidate  for  governor 
but  was  defeated  by  John  Haynes,  of  Newtown. 
This  defeat  with  other  differences  created  in  the 
heat  of  election,  prompted  Ludlow  to  join  in  the 
Dorchester  movement  towards  the  Connecticut 
valley. 

In  1636  Roger  Ludlow  was  the  first  man 
named  in  the  commission  granted  by  the  General 
Court  of  Massachusets  to  "govern  the  people  at 
Connecticott  for  the  space  of  one  year."  For 
the  next  nineteen  years  his  name  was  linked  with 
the  history  of  the  colony  of  Connecticut.  He  ar- 
rived at  what  is  now  known  as  Windsor,  May  6, 
1636,  took  up  a  town  lot  and  began  to  devise 
means  to  protect  the  new  settlement  from  the 
Indians.  May  I,  1637,  found  him  presiding  at  the 
first  court  held  in  Hartford,  then  known  as  New- 
town,  it  being  the  one  at  which  war  was  declared 
on  the  Pequots.  Prior  to  the  swamp  fight  that 
followed  the  destruction  of  the  Pequot  fort,  Lud- 


34  Wadswortti 

low  joined  Mason,  Stoughton  and  the  Indian 
allies  at  Saybrook,  and  while  accompanying  the 
troops  first  saw  the  land  which  he  afterwards 
purchased  from  the  Indians  and  named  Fairfield. 
The  Colonial  Records  show  that  Roger  Lud- 
low  was  a  magistrate  in  1637  an^  1638,  the  first 
Deputy  Governor  of  Connecticut  under  the  Con- 
stitution of  1638-9,  John  Haynes,  who  defeated 
him  in  Massachusetts,  being  at  the  head  of  the 
ticket.  He  was  also  chosen  as  a  Magistrate  in 
1640,  and  every  year  from  that  date  until  he  left 
the  colony  in  1654,  except  in  1642  and  1648,  when 
he  was  again  chosen  Deputy  Governor.  In  1643 
Ludlow  was  one  of  the  representatives  from  Con- 
necticut in  the  negotiations  which  led  to  the  con- 
federation of  the  colonies.  His  skill  as  a  lawyer 
was  also  recognized  by  the  General  Court  in  1646, 
when  he  was  requested  to  draw  up  a  body  of  laws 
for  the  government  of  the  commonwealth.  This 
task  was  completed  in  1650,  when  at  the  May 
session  what  is  known  as  the  Ludlow  Code  or 
Code  of  1650  was  adopted.1 

*  Mr.  Ludlowe  is  requested  to  take  some  paynes  in 
drawing  forth  a  body  of  Lawes  for  the  government  of 
this  Comonwelth  and  present  the  same  to  the  next 
Generall  Court;  and  if  he  can  provide  a  man  for  his 
occasions  while  he  is  employed  in  the  said  searvice,  he 
shall  be  paid  at  the  country  chardge. — Copy  of  order 
adopted  by  the  General  Court  April  9,  1646. 


Introduction  35 

In  1639  the  General  Court  gave  Roger  Ludlow 
permission  to  begin  a  plantation  at  Pequannocke. 
Moving  from  Windsor  he  located  there  and 
founded  the  town  of  Fairfield,  which  was  placed 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  Connecticut.  The  foun- 
ders of  New  Haven  did  not  feel  very  kindly 
towards  the  enterprise  and  in  1653,  when  both 
Fairfield  and  Stamford  expected  an  attack  from 
the  Dutch  and  the  Indians,  Governor  Eaton  and 
his  court  declined  to  assist  them.  This,  with  his 
waning  popularity  in  the  broad  field  of  New 
England,  prompted  Ludlow  to  sell  his  land  in 
Fairfield  and  leave  America.  In  May,  1654,  he 
sailed  with  his  family  to  Virginia,  where,  after 
visiting  his  brother  George,  he  took  ship  for  Eng- 
land. At  that  time  Oliver  Cromwell  was  Protec- 
tor. He  controlled  England  by  force  of  arms, 
had  subdued  Scotland  and  conquered  Ireland. 
Sir  Edmund  Ludlow,  the  Lieutenant  General  of 
Ireland,  met  Roger  Ludlow  at  Hollyhead  in  Sep- 
tember. Two  months  later  the  name  of  the  colo- 
nial lawyer  appeared  as  a  member  of  the  com- 
mission which  was  to  determine  all  claims  in  con- 
nection with  the  forfeited  lands  in  Ireland.  He 
was  reappointed  in  1658.  From  that  date  Roger 
Ludlow's  name  disappeared  from  history. 

Endowed  with  talents  that  were  in  advance  of 
his  surroundings  and  the  period  in  which  he  lived, 


36  Wadsworth 

Roger  Ludlow's  career  in  New  England  was  be- 
set with  disappointments.  He  had  the  ability 
and  the  desire  to  lead  in  every  public  measure, 
but  to  all  appearances  an  impetuous  temper  de- 
prived him  of  the  confidence  which  electors  at  that 
or  any  other  period  place  in  those  whom  they 
favor  with  the  highest  honors.  Like  scores  of 
others  he  failed  in  reaching  the  coveted  goal 
through  a  want  of  that  conservative  familiarity, 
which  eastern  people  call  magnetism  and  which 
the  western  world  looks  for  in  a  "good  mixer." 


JOHN  HAYNES,  Colonizer 


John  Haynes,  the  first  Governor  of  Connecti- 
cut, and  the  third  Governor  of  Massachusetts, 
was  born  in  1594,  at  Coddicot,  County  of  Hert- 
ford, England.  As  has  been  stated  he  sailed  for 
America  in  the  Griffen,  with  Hooker  and  Stone, 
and  located  at  Newtown.  After  serving  the  Mas- 
sachusetts colony  as  Assistant  in  1634,  he  was  in 
1635  elected  Governor,  succeeding  T.  Dudley, 
and  retired  the  following  year  to  make  way  for 
Harry  Vane,  the  same  Sir  Harry  Vane  from 
whom  Cromwell,  when  he  dismissed  the  Rump 


Introduction  37 

Parliament,  asked  the  Lord  to  deliver  him  and 
who  was  after  the  Restoration  the  last  to  suffer 
on  the  scaffold  for  his  connection  with  the  Com- 
monwealth. 

Being  a  man  of  brqad  and  liberal  views  in  the 
matter  of  religion  and  government,  John  Haynes 
was  not  very  favorably  impressed  with  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Colony,  and  during  the  year  after  his 
arrival  he  took  means  to  ascertain  the  feasibility 
of  a  settlement  on  the  Connecticut  River.  The 
report  was,  so  far  as  appearances  show,  favorable, 
and  in  1636,  John  Haynes  marched  through  the 
forest  with  Hooker  and  about  one  hundred  of  his 
followers  who  had  one  hundred  and  sixty  head  of 
cattle  and  a  few  sheep  and  swine.  The  following 
spring  John  Haynes  removed  his  family  to  Hart- 
ford and  for  a  time  resided  on  what  is  now  known 
as  Main  Street,  opposite  the  Meeting  House 
yard  (Public  Square).  Within  a  year  or  two  he 
purchased  Richard  Webb's  lot,  located  at  what  is 
now  known  as  the  corner  of  Arch  and  Front 
Streets,  and  became  the  next  door  neighbor  of 
Thomas  Hooker.  The  Wyllys  property,  on 
which  the  Charter  Oak  stood,  was  on  the  oppo- 
site bank  of  the  Little  River. 

Before  coming  to  America,  John  Haynes  was 
twice  married.  By  his  first  wife  he  had  two  sons 
and  a  daughter.  Robert,  the  oldest,  was  left  in 


38  Wadswmth 

charge  of  his  father's  estate.  He  espoused  the 
cause  of  the  Royalists  during  the  Civil  War  and 
was  imprisoned  in  the  Tower  by  Cromwell. 
Hezekiah,  the  second  son,  took  the  side  of  the 
Parliament  and  became  a  Major  General  under 
Cromwell.  After  the  Restoration,  Charles  II 
committed  him  to  the  Tower,  where  his  brother 
is  supposed  to  have  died  during  the  rule  of  the 
Protector,  but  he  was  finally  set  at  liberty  in  1662. 
John  Haynes'  second  wife  bore  him  three  sons 
and  three  daughters.  The  sons,  John,  Roger  and 
Joseph  were  educated  at  Harvard.  John  re- 
turned to  England  after  his  father's  death  and 
located  at  Colchester.  Roger  accompanied  him 
and  is  supposed  to  have  died  on  the  voyage. 
Joseph  graduated  in  1658,  located  at  Wethers- 
field,  and  in  1664  succeeded  Samuel  Stone  as  pas- 
tor of  the  First  Church  in  Hartford.  Of  the 
daughters,  Mary,  married  Joseph  Cook,  Ruth 
married  Samuel  Wyllys,  and  Martha,  who  was 
born  in  Hartford,  married  James  Russell  of 
Charlestown.  John  Haynes  died  in  Hartford, 
March  I,  1653-4,  and  the  stone  raised  over  his 
grave  still  stands  in  the  old  burying  ground,  cor- 
ner of  Main  and  Gold  Streets.  Connecticut  as  a 
colony  owed  much  to  John  Haynes'1  foresight 

1  Whose  hand  soever  may  in  detail  have  phrased  and 
formulated  the   Fundamental    Laws,  and   Haynes,   and 


Introduction  39 

and  means,  of  which  he  gave  freely  to  advance  its 
interests. 

The  democracy  of  Hooker,  Ludlow,  Haynes 
and  their  associates,  is  now  and  always  has  been 
the  ruling  spirit  of  the  Anglo  Saxon  race.  It 
came  into  Britain  with  Hengist  and  Horsa,  flour- 
ished under  Alfred,  from  whose  reign  trial  by 
jury  dates,  but  was  almost  submerged  by  the 
feudal  system  of  the  Normans,  which  was  con- 
tinued by  the  Plantaganets,  the  Houses  of  Lan- 
caster and  York,  survived  the  Tudors  and  did  not 
disappear  entirely  until  Cromwell  appeared  on 
the  scene.  While  it  remained  the  rights  of  the 
people  were  rarely  considered,  but  with  the  ap- 
pearance in  Parliament  of  deputies  from  the 
boroughs,  the  voice  of  the  people  began  to  com- 
mand respect  and  eventually  had  sufficient  force 
to  seek  redress  of  grievances,  until  finally  under 
Henry  V.  the  Commons  required  that  no  laws 
should  be  framed  merely  upon  their  petitions  un- 
less the  statutes  were  worded  by  themselves  and 
had  been  passed  by  them  in  the  form  of  a  bill. 

In  1295,  Edward  I.,  prior  to  a  war  with  France, 
issued  writs  to  the  sheriffs  enjoining  them  to 
send  to  Parliament  along  with  the  Knights  of  the 

Ludlow,  and  other  men  there  were  who  might  have 
done  it. — Walker's  Thomas  Hooker. 

Haynes  and  Ludlow  shaped  the  infant  state. — Elli- 
ott's History  of  New  England. 


40  Wadsworth 

Shire,  two  deputies  from  each  borough  within  the 
county  and  these  provided  with  sufficient  power 
from  their  community  to  consent  in  its  name  to 
what  the  council  should  require  of  them,  "as  it  is 
a  most  equitable  rule,"  said  the  King  in  the  pre- 
amble to  the  writ,  "that  what  concerns  all  should 
be  approved  of  by  all,"  a  principle  which  led  to 
the  foundation  of  equitable  government.1  This 
was  the  beginning  of  the  House  of  Commons,  the 
deputies  composing  it  being  elected  by  the  alder- 
men and  the  common  council  in  their  respective 
boroughs.  This  system  of  representation  was 
reproduced  in  Connecticut,  the  town  taking  the 
place  of  the  borough.  It  began  with  the  Consti- 
tution of  1638-9  and  is  still  in  force.  Under  it 
Windsor,  Hartford  and  Wethersfield  were 
allowed  to  send  four  of  their  freemen  to  every 
General  Court  "and  whatever  other  towns  shall 
be  hereafter  added  to  this  Jurisdiction,  they  shall 
send  so  many  Deputy s,  as  this  Courte  shall  judge 

meete." 

********* 

For  over  two  centuries  the  name  of  Hartford 
has  been  linked  with  the  Charter  Oak.  Every 
school  boy  has  read  of  Captain  Joseph  Wads- 
worth  and  looked  upon  him  as  a  genuine  hero  in 
homespun,  while  Sir  Edmund  Andros  has  been 

1  Hume's  History  of  England. 


Introduction  43 

painted  as  black  as  the  villain  in  the  play.  Both 
of  them  were  bold  and  fearless  men  whose  cour- 
age was  tested  on  the  battlefield,  Andros  be- 
ing called  to  walk  with  kings  and  princes,  while 
Wadsworth  lived  from  birth  to  old  age  within 
the  boundaries  of  New  England. 

The  Charter  Oak  incident  has  always  had  a  pe- 
culiar fascination  for  the  writer,  possibly  because 
it  was  a  little  out  of  the  ordinary  and  possibly 
because  Charles  II,  the  King  who  granted  the 
Charter  hid  in  an  oak  tree,  when  evading  Crom- 
well's victorious  troops  after  the  battle  of  Wor- 
cester. After  becoming  a  resident  of  Hartford  I 
made  an  effort  to  learn  all  the  details,  historical  and 
legendary,  in  connection  with  it  and  the  people  who 
took  part  in  the  exploit  which  gave  the  tree  a 
place  in  American  history.  After  exhausting  the 
archives  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society, 
which  has  in  its  vault  a  signature  of  the  turbulent 
Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth,  the  Wadsworth 
Inn  was  visited.  It  is  at  present  occupied  by 
Daniel  Wadsworth,  a  lineal  descendant  of  Will- 
iam Wadsworth,  through  his  son,  Joseph,  who 
hid  the  charter  in  the  oak  and  who  at  a  later  date 
was  bold  enough  to  tell  Governor  Fletcher  of 
New  York  that  if  he  interrupted  him  while  put- 
ting his  men  through  their  exercises  he  would  let 
the  light  shine  through  him,  and  that,  at  a  time 


44  Wadsworth 

when  the  Governor  was  striving  to  publish  a 
commission  from  King  William  giving  him  com- 
mand of  the  Connecticut  militia.  And  it  might 
also  be  added  that  Wadsworth  and  his  drummers 
made  a  tremendous  uproar  to  drown  anything 
which  might  be  said  by  the  New  York  visitors. 

The  Wadsworth  Inn  stands  on  the  edge  of  a 
steep  hill  at  the  corner  of  Albany  and  Prospect 
Avenues,  the  latter  being  the  Western  boundary 
of  the  City  of  Hartford.  It  is  a  two-story  red 
brick  building  with  an  addition  in  the  rear  in 
which  the  kitchen  and  dining  room  were  located 
when  the  Albany  stage  coaches  and  freight 
wagons  brought  business  to  its  doors.  All  of 
those,  however,  rolled  away  years  ago,  the  rail- 
road having  diverted  the  line  of  travel  into  other 
channels.  While  the  world  marched  on,  the  old 
building  remains  just  as  it  was  when  Elisha 
Wadsworth  opened  its  doors  for  business  in  1820. 
The  little  tap  room  in  the  north-west  corner  still 
has  its  fireplace,  brick  hearth  and  bar,  and  an  old 
grandfather's  clock  swings  its  pendulum  to  and 
fro  at  the  foot  of  the  stairs  in  the  hall,  while  on 
the  walls  are  to  be  found  prints  of  scenes  con- 
nected with  the  early  history  of  Connecticut. 
"Aunt"  Lucy  Wadsworth  lived  in  this  house  for 
seventy  years  and  in  all  of  that  time  occupied  the 
same  room.  She  died  August  30,  1900,  aged  nine- 


Introduction  45 

ty-eight  years  and  eight  months.  Lucy  Wads- 
worth  was  a  daughter  of  Elisha  Wadsworth,  who 
was  born  in  1781  and  died  in  1854.  Her  brother, 
Sidney  Wadsworth,  was  born  in  1813  and  died  in 
1887.  He  was  the  father  of  Daniel  Wadsworth, 
the  present  occupant  of  the  Inn.  Elisha  Wads- 
worth,  the  father  of  Lucy  and  Sidney,  was  the 
third  member  of  the  family  to  bear  that  name, 
his  father  being  Elisha  Wadsworth  (1750-1824), 
son  of  Elisha  Wadsworth  (1721-1780),  son  of 
Ichabod  Wadsworth  (1688-1777),  son  of  Captain 
Joseph  Wadsworth  (1648-1730),  son  of  William 
Wadsworth  (1595-1675),  one  of  the  original  plan- 
ters of  Hartford. 

In  response  to  an  inquiry  for  data  connected 
with  the  Wadsworths  dead  and  gone,  Daniel 
Wadsworth  told  me  that  he  had  frequently  heard 
his  father  and  Aunt  Lucy  speak  of  a  box  of  old 
papers  in  the  garret.  He  said  that  he  had  never 
seen  it,  but  that  he  would  make  a  search  and  re- 
port. A  few  days  later  I  received  a  note  from  him 
stating  that  he  had  the  box  and  if  I  would  call 
he  would  be  pleased  to  give  it  to  me  with  the  con- 
tents. The  find  proved  a  time  stained  box  made 
of  inch  pine  boards  fastened  together  with  hand 
made  nails.  When  found  the  cover  was  pushed 
to  one  side  and  many  of  the  papers  on  the  top 
were  torn,  while  the  edges  of  others  were  frayed 


46  Wadsworth 

by  mice  which  had  used  portions  of  the  material 
to  make  nests  for  their  young.  In  this  box  I 
found  scores  of  letters,  accounts,  and  notes  of  all 
sizes  and  descriptions,  summons  issued  under  the 
authority  of  the  Kings  of  England  to  appear  in 
court  and  folded  with  them  other  summons 
issued  under  the  authority  of  the  State  of  Con- 
necticut to  appear  in  the  same  place.  A  republic 
known  as  the  United  States  of  America  was 
established  between  the  dates  on  which  those 
papers  were  served,  and  Connecticut,  as  well  as 
the  Wadsworths  within  and  without  its  boun- 
daries, had  fought  nobly  in  the  cause,  leaving  in 
the  path  of  history  footprints  as  deep  as  the  im- 
mediate descendents  of  William  and  Christopher 
Wadsworth  had  on  the  colonial  records  of  New 
England. 

Accounts  of  every  character  and  description 
were  scattered  through  the  letters,  the  list  of 
items  including  everything  from  a  barrel  of  rum 
to  pasture  for  a  cow,  while  deeds,  notes  and  other 
memoranda  outlined  the  daily  lives  of  those  who 
penned  them.  A  few  of  the  bills  on  the  top  of  the 
box  were  made  out  in  dollars  and  cents,  but  all 
prior  to  1783  were  in  the  pounds,  shillings  and 
pence  of  Great  Britain.  All  of  them  were  silent 
witnesses  of  the  change  of  government.  Under 
the  several  packages  of  letters,  all  of  which 


Introduction  47 

showed  that  they  had  been  sealed  with  wafers, 
many  of  them  still  retaining  a  portion  of  the  wax, 
I  found  a  parcel  somewhat  frayed  at  the  ends — 
mice  again  no  doubt — and  tied  with  what  looked 
like  a  sinew  of  a  deer.  Whatever  it  was,  time  had 
made  it  so  brittle  that  it  parted  as  soon  as 
handled. 

Upon  examining  the  papers  I  found  the  material 
from  which  the  following  sketches  were  written. 
Whether  they  are  fact  or  fancy,  and  my  impres- 
sion is  that  there  is  a  little  of  both,  must  remain 
in  doubt  until  another  discovery  of  a  similar  na- 
ture is  made.  Those  who  have  read  them  are  of 
the  opinion  that  the  material  presented  is  the 
basis  of  the  Wadsworth  family  legends,  which 
have  been  handed  down  from  one  generation  to 
another  and  which  have  been  repeated  from  time 
out  of  mind  by  many  a  gray  head  at  New  Eng- 
land firesides  during  the  winter  evenings.  When 
a  green  log  would  snap  and  send  the  coals  flying 
over  the  hearth,  more  than  one  was  heard  to 
exclaim  that  the  spirit  of  Old  Joe  was  in  it,  while 
those  whose  lives  led  them  back  to  the  deeds 
related  by  their  grandparents  would  nod  their 
heads  and  chuckle  over  the  dead,  dead  past  whose 
events  were  chronicled  by  an  occasional  pen  or 
the  uncertain  memories  of  those  who  took  a  part 
in  them.  The  ubiquitous  reporter  and  the  corre- 


48  Wadsworth 

spondent  at  the  front  were  unheard  of  in  those 
days.  The  men  who  acted  in  that  period  had  no 
time  to  pose  for  photographers  or  artists  on  the 
spot.  They  were  after  results,  not  a  few  hours' 
notoriety  to  be  followed  by  contention,  criticism 
and  obscurity.  As  for  books  and  news  letters, 
they  are  rare,  and  those  that  can  be  located  are, 
with  a  few  exceptions,  filled  with  events  from 
the  great  outside  world  with  an  occasional  item 
about  the  land  we  live  in. 

Memory  plays  many  pranks  with  history.  Its 
products  are  attractive,  but  as  a  rule  unreliable, 
as  like  a  snowball  on  a  warm  day  in  winter,  the 
volume  increases  with  each  revolution  on  the  hill 
of  time.  Still  it  supplies  the  gloss  and  spangles 
used  to  dress  statistical  matter,  which  is  as  dry 
and  uninteresting,  but  at  the  same  time  as  neces- 
sary as  the  multiplication  table.  By  blending 
fact  and  fancy  it  is  possible  to  weave  a  narrative 
which  entertains  and  at  the  same  time  instructs  the 
reader.  Those  who  believe  it  can;  those  who 
doubt  it  may ; — so  let  it  go  at  that. 


MEMORIES 


MEMORIES 


WILLIAM  WADSWORTH 


Now  that  old  age  and  the  infirmities  that  ac- 
company it  keep  me  by  the  fireside  during  the 
winter  months,  I  have,  at  the  request  of  my  chil- 
dren and  grandchilden,  consented  to  put  on  paper 
a  few  of  the  events  in  which  the  Wadsworth 
family  took  part  in  the  early  days  of  the  Connect- 
icut Colony.  There  was  a  time  when  it  was  said 
that  whenever  there  was  danger  on  foot  or  fight- 
ing in  the  wind  you  would  meet  some  one  bearing 
the  name,  and  I  hope  it  will  always  be  so,  provid- 
ing the  risk  is  taken  or  the  fighting  done  on  the 
side  of  right.  During  my  life  I  have  had  more 
than  my  share  of  trouble  with  Indian  surprises, 
Dutch  and  French  alarms  and  disputes  with  my 
own  folk,  as  well  as  those  acting  in  authority  for 
the  King  and  colony.  Many  a  time  I  have  been 
called  upon  to  pay  the  penalty  for  temper,  and 
when  in  the  wrong  no  one  ever  saw  the  time  that 
I  refused  to  make  public  or  private  reflections 
upon  myself.  I  have  always  tried  in  my  poor 
way  to  take  what  was  allotted  me  in  good  part 
and  make  amends  for  an  injury,  be  it  white  man, 


52  Wadsworth 

Indian  or  slave.1  That  is  the  trail  I  blazed 
through  life,  and  while  the  bark  is  off  many  a 
tree,  now  when  old  age  has  cooled  the  hot  blood 
of  youth  and  the  ardor  of  middle  age,  with  an 
old  man's  vanity  I  can  say  that  I  am  proud  of  it, 
and  I  say  it  as  a  soldier,  as  a  lawyer,  and  as  a 
former  deputy  of  Connecticut,  of  which  my 
father,  William  Wadsworth,  was  an  original 
planter. 

There  is  a  strain  of  Anglo-Saxon  fighting  blood 
in  all  the  Wadsworths,  and  I  hope  it  will  never 

1  The  following,  which  was  found  in  the  box,  was  no 
doubt  written  to  illustrate  this: 

"As  father  grew  older  a  marked  change  became  ap- 
parent to  all  of  us.  Age  softened  the  sharpness  of  his 
tongue  and  brought  with  it  a  desire  for  comradeship 
that  was  very  pleasing  to  all  of  us.  Abroad,  Captain 
Joe  was  the  same  bluff,  old  soldier  who  would 
shoulder  a  pike  or  gun  as  cheerfully  as  he  would  come 
home  to  dinner,  but  at  the  fireside  he  always  spoke  of 
the  past,  reminding  all  of  us  frequently  by  name  that 
the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number  was  accom- 
plished by  the  most  direct  measures.  After  reading 
from  the  New  Testament  he  frequently  said  that  the 
greatest  sayings  were  the  simplest  and  that  the 
thoughts  which  bore  conviction  were  clothed  in  the 
language  of  a  child.  He  rarely  turned  to  the  Old  Tes- 
tament upon  which  many  of  the  penal  laws  of  the  col- 
ony were  based.  On  one  of  his  visits  the  Teacher  men- 
tioned this  and  father,  ever  ready  with  the  tongue, 
said  that  it  was  a  mistake  for  the  colony  to  tax  the 
Jews  when  it  had  taken  the  laws  handed  down  to  them 
by  Moses.  As  I  write  I  can  still  hear  him  tell  the 
Teacher  that  the  people  of  all  beliefs  should  be  told  to 
love  one  another  regardless  of  their  faith,  as  all  men 
could  not  think  alike." 


WADSWORTHS  FROM    1595  to    1904 


Memories  55 

breed  out.  Father  said  it  came  down  to  us  from 
the  Yorkshire  Wadsworths,  who  traced  to  Duke 
Wada.1  Whether  it  did  or  not  is  foreign  to  my 
task,  and  lest  I  give  offense  to  those  who  may 
read  these  notes,  I  shall  from  this  time  confine 
my  remarks  to  the  Wadsworth  family  and  those 
with  whom  they  were  associated  in  England  and 
America. 

William  Wadsworth,  my  father,  came  from 
Newtown  with  the  Hooker  company  in  1636  and 
remained  in  Hartford  the  balance  of  his  life.  He 
died  in  1675  as  is  shown  by  the  town  records.  He 


following  reference  to  Duke  Wada  in  York- 
shire appears  in  the  Wadsworth  Family  in  America, 
the  paragraph  quoted  being  from  Lionel  Charlton's 
History  of  Whitby,  1779.  "During  the  course  of  these 
civil  wars,  some  little  time  before  the  year  800,  one  of 
the  chief  leaders  or  heads  of  the  faction  against  the 
government  was  Duke  Wada,  who  lived  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Streanshalh,  having  his  castle  at  the  place 
now  called  Mulgrave.  This  Wada  was  one  of  the  prin- 
cipal conspirators  among  those  that  murdered  Ethel- 
red,  King  of  Northumberland;  and  afterwards  joining 
the  confederates  with  what  forces  he  could  raise,  gave 
battle  to  his  successor,  Ardulph,  at  Whalley  in  Lin- 
colnshire, but  with  such  ill  fortune,  that  his  army  was 
routed  and  himself  obliged  to  fly  for  it.  On  which  he 
fortified  his  castle  at  Mulgrave  with  an  intention  to 
defend  himself;  but  being  seized  with  a  certain  dis- 
temper, he  soon  ended  his  days,  and  was  interred  there 
on  a  hill,  between  two  hard  stones,  about  seven  feet 
high,  which  being  twelve  feet  from  each  other,  gave 
rise  to  the  current  report,  which  still  prevails,  that  he 
was  a  giant  in  bulk  and  stature."  It  is  further  fabled, 
that  Wada  and  his  wife,  the  giantess  Bell,  built  Mul- 


56  Wadsworth 

was  born  at  Long  Buckley  in  Northamptonshire, 
England,  in  1595,  or,  as  he  always  stated  it,  in  the 
thirty-seventh  year  of  the  reign  of  Queen  Eliza- 
beth, and  came  to  New  England  on  the  ship  Lion 
in  1633  with  his  four  children,  Sarah,  Mary,  Wil- 
liam and  John,  and  his  brother  Christopher.1 

grave  and  Pickering  castles,  one  working  upon  one 
and  the  other  upon  the  second.  But  since  they  had 
only  one  hammer,  they  threw  it  backwards  and  for- 
wards across  the  country  when  it  was  wanted,  shout- 
ing so  that  the  one  to  whom  it  was  thrown  might  be 
ready  to  catch  it.  They  had  a  son,  who  when  an  in- 
fant could  throw  stones  of  enormous  size,  and  becom- 
ing impatient  one  day  for  his  mother's  return,  threw 
a  huge  stone  across  a  valley  at  her,  striking  here  with 
such  force  as  to  indent  the  stone  itself.  The  Roman 
Road,  which  is  called  Wade's  Causeway,  was  formed 
by  Wada  and  Bell;  he  paving  and  she  bringing  stones 
in  her  apron,  which,  sometimes  giving  way,  would 
cause  her  to  drop  large  heaps,  which  can  now  be  seen 
in  the  heath. — There  can  be  but  little  doubt  that  the 
name  of  Wadsworth  originally  signified  Wada's  or 
Waddy's  residence,  Worth,  according  to  Edmonds, 
being  derived  in  the  Anglo-Saxon  from  Wyrth,  an  es- 
tate or  manor,  usually  one  well  watered.  (See  Glos- 
sary of  Yorkshire  Words.) 

1  Christopher  Wadsworth's  name  did  not  appear  on 
the  Lion's  passenger  list  and  the  date  of  his  landing 
was  unknown  until  1881,  when  E.  S.  Cowles,  of  Hart- 
ford, Conn.,  came  into  possession  of  a  Bible  in  which 
the  following  is  written: 

"Christopher  Wadsworth.     His  Book." 

"Christopher  and  William  Wadsworth  landed  in 
Boston  by  ye  ship  Lion  i6th  September,  1632,  together 
in  ye  ship." 

This  Bible  was  printed  in  London  by  Bonham  Nor- 
ton and  John  Bill,  1625. 


Memories  57 

Christopher  settled  in  Massachusetts  at  Duxbury 
and  his  descendants  are  well  known  in  those 
parts,  several  of  them  having  fought  and  died  in 
the  Indian  wars. 

The  voyage  on  the  Lion  was  the  second  made 
by  my  father  to  the  English  colonies  in  America, 
as  in  a  book  which  my  brother  John  gave  me 
some  time  before  his  death  I  find  the  following 
entry : 

November  22,  1621.  Came  this  day  to  Newport 
News  with  Daniel  Gookin  in  the  Flying  Harte. 

This  Daniel  Gookin1  was  a  native  of  Kent  and 
was  at  that  time  located  at  Cork,  Ireland.  He 
owned  over  two  thousand  acres  of  land  at  New- 
port News,  as  well  as  a  number  of  vessels  in 
which  he  shipped  cattle  and  goats  from  England 
and  Ireland  to  the  Virginia  colony.  Father  sailed 
with  him,  as  stated,  in  the  Flying  Harte  and  landed 
at  Newport  News  in  November. 

1  According  to  the  most  ancient  records  of  Virginia, 
Daniel  Gooken  was  granted  two  thousand  acres  in 
Elizabeth  City  county,  commonly  called  Newport 
News.  (William  and  Mary  College  Quarterly  for 
1897,  Vol.  VI,  p.  257.)  Newport  News  is  now  by  leg- 
islative enactment  wholly  in  Warwick  County.  Prior 
to  1621  Thomas  Wood  in  behalf  of  Daniel  Gookin 
completed  a  treaty  with  the  Virginia  Company  for  the 
transportation  of  cattle  of  the  English  breed  out  of 
Ireland,  the  rate  agreed  upon  being  n  pounds  for 
heifers  and  3  pounds  10  shillings  for  she  goats  upon 
certificate  of  safe  landing.  (Virginia  Company  in 
London.) 


58  Wadsworth 

On  another  page  of  the  same  book  there  ap- 
pears a  few  facts  in  relation  to  the  Indian  massa- 
cre which  occurred  March  22  of  the  following 
year.  In  it  three  hundred  and  forty-nine  people 
were  killed  almost  without  a  moment's  warning. 
Daniel  Gookin  and  those  who  were  with  him  re- 
sisted the  attack  and  escaped  with  their  lives, 
and  when  at  a  later  date  the  governor  of  the  col- 
ony ordered  the  remnant  of  the  people  to  draw 
together  for  mutual  protection,  he  was  one  of 
those  who  refused  to  obey,  the  others,  according 
to  these  notes,  being  Edward  Hill  at  Elizabeth 
City  and  Samuel  Jordan  at  Jordan's  Point.  By 
throwing  up  intrenchments  and  mounting  cannon 
they  put  themselves  in  a  position  to  defend  them- 
selves from  further  attacks,  which  fortunately 
never  occurred,  as  the  Indians  in  Virginia  were 
from  that  day  hunted  like  beasts  of  prey. 

A  short  time  after  the  massacre  Daniel  Gookin 
sailed  for  London  in  the  Sea  Flower.  He  was 
accompanied  by  my  father  and  a  number  of 
others  who  left  the  colony  forever.  Virginia  was 
almost  depopulated,  the  number  of  the  plantations 
being  reduced,  as  Daniel  Gookin's  son  told  me, 
from  eighty  to  six.  As  the  years  rolled  by,  others 
arrived  from  England  to  take  the  place  of  the 
dead  and  those  who  sailed  away  in  the  summer 
of  1622.  Daniel  Gookin,  after  bearing  the  details 


Memories  59 

of  the  massacre  to  the  Virginia  Company  in  Lon- 
don, also  returned  and  became  one  of  the  most 
important  men  in  the  colony.  His  son,  also 
named  Daniel,1  at  a  later  date  became  one  of  the 
noted  men  in  the  English  colonies.  Being  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Puritan  church,  he  removed  in  1644 
from  Virginia  to  Massachusetts,  and  settled  at 
Cambridge,  where  he  died  in  1687. 

My  father's  life  from  the  time  he  settled  in 
Hartford  was  busy,  though  uneventful.  The 
town  records  show  that  he  was  a  selectman, 
townsman  and  constable  between  1638-9,  when  the 
Fundamental  Orders  were  adopted,  and  1656,  and 
that  he  was  a  deputy  at  almost  every  session  of 

1  Daniel  Gookin,  2d,  was  born  in  Kent,  England,  in 
1612,  and  is  supposed  to  have  accompanied  his  father 
to  Virginia  when  he  returned  after  reporting  the  In- 
dian massacre  to  the  Virginia  Company  in  London  in 
1622.  In  1642  he  was  President  of  the  County  Court 
at  Upper  Norfolk.  In  1644  he  removed  to  Massachu- 
setts and  located  at  Cambridge.  He  became  a  friend 
of  John  Eliot,  the  "apostle  to  the  Indians."  According 
to  the  Massachusetts  Historical  collections  (Vol.  I,  p. 
228)  Daniel  Gookin  was  in  1644  chosen  member  of  the 
House  of  Deputies  as  well  as  appointed  captain  of  a 
military  company.  In  1652  he  was  elected  assistant 
and  in  1656  superintendent  of  all  the  Indians  in  Mas- 
sachusetts and  continued  in  that  office  until  his  death, 
except  for  two  or  three  years  while  in  England.  In 
1656  he  visited  Cromwell's  court  and  had  an  inter- 
view with  the  Protector  who  commissioned  him  to  in- 
vite the  people  of  Massachusetts  to  go  to  Jamaica. 
He  was  very  unpopular  during  the  King  Philip  war  as 
he  sympathized  with  the  Indians.  He  died  in  1687. 


60  Wadsworth 

the  General  Court  from  that  year  up  to  the  day 
of  his  death. 

The  Lion  sailed  from  London  June  22,  1633, 
and  arrived  at  Boston  on  Sunday  evening,  Sep- 
tember 16,  with  one  hundred  and  twenty-three 
passengers,  of  which  fifty  were  children.  Of  this 
number,  in  addition  to  my  father  and  his  family, 
the  following  came  to  Hartford  with  Hooker: 
William  Goodwin,  James  Olmstead,  his  two  sons, 
Nicholas  and  Nehemiah,  two  nephews,  Richard 
and  John,  and  a  niece,  Rebecca,  Nathaniel  Rich- 
ards, William  Lewis,  Elder  John  White  and  John 
Talcott.  William  Goodwin  was  the  neighbor 
and  friend  of  Thomas  Hooker  and  was  for  many 
years  an  elder  of  the  church.  He  was  one  of  the 
agents  who  purchased  Farmington  from  the  In- 
dians, while  he  also  purchased  large  tracts  of  land 
up  the  river.  After  Hooker's  death  he  differed 
with  my  uncle,  Samuel  Stone,  in  the  management 
of  the  church,  and  finally,  with  Governor  Web- 
ster, led  what  was  known  as  the  "Withdrawers," 
from  Hartford  to  Hadley. 

I  have  always  been  told  that  this  dismember- 
ment of  the  church  was  a  dark  day  for  Hartford, 
still  those  who  remained,  retained  a  kindly 
feeling  for  their  brethren  further  up  the  Connecti- 
cut, as  was  shown  by  the  assistance  sent  them 
during  the  Indian  wars.  In  my  soldiering  days  I 


Memories  61 

was  there  a  number  of  times  and  on  one  of  my 
visits  met  with  an  adventure  which  will  be  writ- 
ten down  in  its  proper  place.  Elder  Goodwin  did 
not  live  to  see  the  sad  days  of  the  King  Philip 
war,  as  after  living  at  South  Hadley  for  about 
ten  years,  he  removed  to  Farmington,  where  he 
died  in  1673.  It  was  in  the  month  of  March,  and 
a  cold  and  stormy  month  it  was.  My  brother 
John  and  I  were  at  his  funeral  and  ate  and  drank, 
as  I  remember,  more  than  our  share  of  the  fare 
provided  for  the  mourners. 

James  Olmsted  came  to  Hartford  with  his  two 
sons,  two  nephews  and  niece  Rebecca.  He  died 
in  1640,  his  place  being  taken  in  the  colony  by 
his  son  Nathaniel,  who  at  the  age  of  eighteen 
served  in  the  Pequot  war  and  was  with  Mason 
when  the  fort  was  destroyed.  He  was  also  in  the 
King  Philip  war  and  died  in  1684.  His  brother 
Nehemiah  removed  in  1649  to  Fairfield,  a  town 
founded  by  Roger  Ludlow,  between  New  Haven 
and  the  Dutch  settlement  at  Manhattan.  He  died 
in  1659.  Richard,  one  of  the  nephews,  was  in 
the  Pequot  war  and  also  in  the  Sasco  fight.  In 
1651  he  removed  to  Norwalk,  where  he  died  in 
1684.  The  burying  ground  occupies  the  lot  as- 
signed Richard  Olmsted.  It  was  taken1  after  it 

January  n,  1640-1.  The  first  settlers  of  Connecticut 
commenced  their  year  on  the  25th  of  March.  This  was 
continued  in  Great  Britain  and  the  American  colonies 
until  1752. 


62  Wadsworth 

was  decided  not  to  make  any  more  burials  in  the 
Meeting  House  yard.  John,  the  other  nephew, 
became  a  physician  and  surgeon.  He  removed  to 
Saybrook,  but  finally  settled  at  Norwich.  During 
the  King  Philip  war  he  was  with  the  train  bands. 
Nathaniel  Richards  remained  in  Hartford  un- 
til 1650,  when  he,  with  a  number  of  others,  plant- 
ed the  town  of  Norwalk,  while  William  Lewis 
and  John  White,  two  of  the  remaining  compan- 
ions of  my  father  on  the  Lion,  were  with  the 
"Withdrawers"  who  turned  their  backs  on  Hart- 
ford in  1659.  Lewis  remained  at  South  Hadley 
until  after  the  King  Philip  war,  when  he  re- 
moved to  Farmington  and  died  there  in  1683. 
John  White  returned  to  Hartford  in  1671  and  was 
ordained  ruling  elder  of  the  Second  church.  One 
of  his  daughters  married  Barnabas  Hinsdale,  who 
was  in  the  company  under  Captain  Lathrop,  that 
was  killed  by  the  Indians  while  marching  with 
carts  laden  with  corn  and  other  goods  from  Deer- 
field  to  Hadley.  Hubbard,  in  his  "Narrative  of 
the  Indian  Wars,"  printed  in  Boston  in  1677,  says, 
"Upon  September  18  (1675)  that  most  fatal  day, 
the  saddest  that  ever  befell  New  England,  as  the 
company  under  Captain  Lathrop  was  marching 
along  with  the  carts,  never  apprehending  danger 
so  near,  they  were  suddently  set  upon  and  almost 
all  cut  off  (ninety  killed,  teamsters  included),  not 


Memories  63 

above  seven  or  eight  escaping."  That  night  Ma- 
jor Treat  arrived  at  Deerfield  with  a  company  of 
English  and  Mohegans.  On  the  following  day 
he  and  Captain  Mosely  marched  to  the  scene  of 
ambush  and  buried  the  brave  men  where  they 
fell. 

John  Talcott  came  from  Braintree  in  Essex. 
He  was  accompanied  by  his  wife,  Dorothy  and 
their  two  children,  Mary  and  John.  Like  all  of 
the  members  of  the  Hooker  company,  they  set- 
tled at  Newtown  and  remained  there  until  1636, 
John  Talcott  being  twice  elected  deputy  in  the 
interval.  His  son,  Samuel,  was  also  born  at  that 
place.  John  Talcott  came  to  Hartford  with 
Hooker,  and  from  that  day  to  this  one  or  more 
members  of  the  family  have  been  continuously 
chosen  to  represent  the  freemen.  At  the  time  of 
his  death,  in  1660,  John  Talcott  was  an  assistant 
and  treasurer  of  the  colony.  Before  that  he  was 
a  deputy.  His  son,  John,  succeeded  him  as  treas- 
urer. He  held  the  office  until  1676,  when  he  re- 
signed to  command  the  troops  in  the  King  Philip 
war.  I  am  proud  to  say  that  I  have  marched  un- 
der his  orders.  Colonel  Talcott  routed  the  In- 
dians wherever  he  found  them  and  they  were  as 
much  afraid  of  him  and  Major  Treat  as  the  Irish 
are  said  to  have  been  of  Oliver  Cromwell. 
Throughout  New  England  both  of  these  men 


64  Wadsworth 

were  known  as  skillful  and  bold  soldiers.  In  my 
humble  way  when  a  command  came  to  me  I  tried 
to  follow  in  their  footsteps,  and  now  in  my  old 
age  I  can  look  back  and  say  that  where  I  failed 
in  skill  I  more  than  balanced  the  loss  with  bold- 
ness. 

John  Talcott's  name  appears  in  the  charter  which 
King  Charles  II.  gave  the  colony  in  1662,  and 
when  it  was  received  he,  with  Samuel  Wyllys 
and  John  Allyn,  were  appointed  by  the  General 
Court  to  see  that  no  harm  came  to  it.  The 
charter  was  kept  in  a  box  which  I  have 
been  told  Winthrop  made  with  his  own 
hands  in  London.  Whether  this  is  true  or  not 
I  am  not  prepared  to  state  positively,  but  the  box1 
can  be  seen  and  the  man  who  made  it  was  not  a 
joiner.  The  box  and  the  charters  were  for  a 
number  of  years  deposited  with  John  Allyn.  On 
town  meeting  days  one  of  them  was  carried  to 
the  Meeting  House  and  read  to  the  people.  That 
I  can  certify  to,  as  I  was  present  a  number  of 
times  when  it  was  read  and  I  was  also  present 
when  it  was  not  read — but  of  that  anon. 

John  Talcott  died  about  two  months  after  Ed- 
mund Andros  joined  the  government  of  this  col- 
ony to  Massachusetts.  He  left  a  large  family, 

1  This  box  is  among  the  relics  owned  by  the  Con- 
necticut Historical  Society. 


Memories  65 

my  second  wife,  Elizabeth,  being  one  of  his 
daughters,  and  I  hope  to  live  long  enough  to  see 
his  son  Joseph  Governor  of  Connecticut.1  Mary, 
the  oldest  daughter  of  John  Talcott,  married  the 
Rev.  John  Russell,  of  Wethersfield,  in  1649.  They 
removed  with  the  "Withdrawers,"  in  1659,  to 
South  Hadley,  where  Mistress  Russell  died  the 
following  year.  Her  husband  remained  at  that 
place  and  the  majority  of  the  members  of  his 
church  in  Wethersfield  followed  him.  It  was  in 
his  house  that  the  King's  Judges,  William  Whal- 
ley  and  his  son-in-law,  Edward  Goffe,  found  shel- 
ter when  they  fled  from  Milford,  and  it  was  my 
privilege  to  meet  both  of  these  good  men,  who 
suffered  without  complaint  and  died  in  exile  for 
doing  what  their  conscience  dictated. 


CROMWELL 


The  names  of  Whalley  and  Goffe  recall  a  few 
incidents  in  connection  with  my  father's  early 
days  in  England,  together  with  what  both  of 
them  told  me  of  the  history  of  the  Cromwell  fam- 

1  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth  lived  to  see  Joseph  Tal- 
cott Governor  of  Connecticut.  He  died  in  1630  and 
Joseph  Talcott  was  elected  Governor  in  1624  and  re- 
mained in  office  until  1641. 


66  Wadsworth 

ily.  Oliver  Cromwell,  the  Lord  Protector  of 
England,  was  Whalley's  cousin,  his  father  and 
Whalley's  mother  being  brother  and  sister.  By 
his  skill  in  battle,  boldness  in  counsel  and  vigor 
in  debate,  Cromwell  rose  from  a  sheep  farmer  in 
the  fen  country  to  a  king  in  all  but  name,  and 
that  what  they  told  me  may  not  be  lost,  I  will 
write  it,  although  it  is  connected  only  incidentally 
with  the  Wadsworths. 

The  country  seat  of  the  Cromwells  was  named 
Hinchenbrook,  its  name  being  taken  from  the 
brook  that  joins  the  Ouse  River  near  Huntingdon 
in  Huntingdonshire.  The  estate  was  originally 
a  convent  and  after  it  was  suppressed  Sir  Rich- 
ard Cromwell,1  the  founder  of  the  family,  pur- 

1  Sir  Richard  Cromwell  was  a  son  of  Morgan  Wil- 
liams or  Morgan  ap  Williams,  whose  father,  William 
ap  Yeran,  held  an  honorable  place  in  the  household  of 
William,  Duke  of  Bedford,  and  it  is  said  in  that  of  his 
nephew  Henry  VII.  Morgan  Williams  married  a  sister 
of  Thomas  Cromwell,  afterwards  Earl  of  Essex,  and 
their  son  upon  the  suggestion  of  Henry  VIII.  assumed 
the  name  of  his  uncle.  An  attempt  on  the  part  of  the 
Roman  Catholics  in  1536  to  check  the  progress  of 
the  Reformation  in  the  eastern  counties  of  England 
afforded  Henry  VIII.  with  a  pretext  for  demolishing 
the  monasteries  in  that  district  and  for  disbursing  their 
revenues  among  his  favorites  and  dependents.  Ram- 
sey Abbey  was  partly  given  and  partly  sold  to  Richard 
Williams,  alias  Cromwell.  He  named  it  Hinchen- 
brook. It  became  the  home  of  the  Cromwells  and  re- 
mained in  the  family  until  Sir  Oliver,  impoverished  by 
the  visits  of  royalty,  was  forced  to  sell  it  during  the 
reign  of  Charles  I.  to  the  Montagues.  The  crown  giv- 


Memories  67 

chased  it  from  King  Henry  VIII.  This  Sir  Rich- 
ard was  a  son  of  a  Glamorganshire  squire  named 
Williams  and  a  sister  of  Thomas  Cromwell, 
known  in  history  as  the  "Mauler  of  the  Monas- 
teries," and  to  whom,  according  to  Shakespeare, 
the  fallen  Cardinal  Woolsey  said: 

"Cromwell,    I    charge    thee,    fling   away    ambition! 
Had  I  but  served  my  God  with  half  the  zeal 
I  served  my  King,  he  would  not  in  mine  old  age 
Have  left  me  naked  to  mine  enemies." 

eth  and  the  crown  taketh  away.  Sir  Henry  Cromwell, 
a  son  of  Sir  Oliver  and  a  cousin  of  the  Protector, 
served  in  several  Parliaments  for  Huntingdonshire, 
voting  in  1660  for  the  Restoration  of  the  Monarchy, 
and  as  he  knew  that  the  name  of  Cromwell  would  not 
be  acceptable  at  court  he  discarded  it  and  assumed 
that  of  Williams,  and  he  is  so  styled  in  a  list  of 
Knights  of  the  proposed  order  of  the  Royal  Oak.  He 
died  at  Huntingdon  August  3,  1673.  On  March  22, 
1663,  Pepys  referred  to  him  in  his  Diary  as  "Colonel 
Williams,  Cromwell  that  was."  Thomas  Fuller,  in 
the  second  volume  of  his  Church  History  of  Great 
Britain,  says  that  Richard  Williams,  alias  Cromwell, 
the  founder  of  the  family,  was  one  of  five  who  in  the 
thirty-second  year  of  Henry  VIII.  made  the  bold 
challenge  at  jousts  to  all  comers  that  would,  in  France, 
Flanders,  Scotland  and  Spain.  He  came  into  the  place 
an  esquire,  but  departed  a  Knight,  dubbed  by  the  King 
for  his  valor,  clearly  carrying  away  the  credit;  over- 
throwing Mr.  Palmer  in  the  field  at  jousts  in  one  day, 
and  the  next  serving  Mr.  Culpepper  at  barriers  in  the 
same  manner.  Heretofore  there  goeth  a  tradition  in 
the  family,  that  King  Henry  was  highly  pleased  with 
his  prowess.  "Formerly,"  said  he,  "thou  wast  my 
Dick,  but  hereafter  thou  shalt  be  my  Diamond,"  and 
thereat  let  fall  his  diamond  ring  upon  him.  In  avow- 
ance  thereof  these  Cromwells  have  ever  since  given 
for  their  crest  "a  lion  holding  a  diamond  ring  in  his 
forepaw." 


68  Wadsworth 

Thomas  Cromwell  defended  Woolsey  with  so 
much  spirit  that  King  Henry  VIII.'s  attention 
was  called  to  him.  This  laid  the  foundation  of  his 
favor  with  the  King,  who  in  six  years  conferred 
on  him  the  titles  Vicar  General,  Lord  Cromwell 
and  Earl  of  Essex,  and  finally  sent  him  to  the 
scaffold.  During  the  period  of  prosperity  his 
nephew  was  knighted  and  at  the  suggestion  of  the 
king  adopted  the  name  of  his  distinguished  uncle, 
although  up  to  the  time  of  the  Protector  all  of 
the  important  family  papers  were  signed  Crom- 
well, alias  Williams.  In  his  day  Sir  Richard  also 
made  a  name  for  himself  at  Court  by  his  skill  at 
arms,  one  of  his  most  brilliant  exploits  being  in  a 
tournament  at  Westminster,  on  May  Day,  in 
1540,  when  he  defended  the  honor  and  rights  of 
the  English  king  against  the  challenges  from 
France,  Flanders,  Scotland  and  Spain. 

Sir  Richard  left  Hinchenbrook  to  his  son 
Henry.  He  was  held  in  high  regard  by  Queen 
Elizabeth,  who  knighted  him  and  did  him  further 
honor  by  lodging  at  Hinchenbrook  while  return- 
ing from  a  visit  to  the  University  at  Cambridge. 
Sir  Henry  completed  the  manor  house  and  spent 
the  money  which  his  father  acquired  in  the  cru- 
sades against  the  monasteries  and  convents,  so 
lavishly  that  he  was  known  as  the  "Golden 
Knight."  He  died  in  1603,  leaving  six  sons  and 


Memories  69 

three  daughters.  Of  the  latter,  Joan  became  Lady 
Harrington,  Elizabeth  the  mother  of  John  Hamp- 
den,  and  Frances  the  mother  of  William  Whalley, 
upon  whom  Oliver  Cromwell  leaned  in  war  and 
peace.  Of  the  sons,  Oliver  inherited  Hinchen- 
brook,  Robert  settled  in  Huntingdon  and  married 
Widow  Lynne,  nee  Elizabeth  Steward,  and  in 
time  became  the  father  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  the 
Lord  Protector.  A  daughter  of  Henry,  the  third 
son,  married  Oliver  St.  John,  the  lawyer  who  de- 
fended John  Hampden  in  the  ship  money  trial  and 
who  afterwards  became  one  of  the  strong  men 
in  the  commonwealth.  Philip,  the  fourth  son, 
was  knighted  by  King  James,  at  Whitehall, 
while  his  sons  fought  for  and  against  King 
Charles  in  the  Revolution,  two  being  with  the 
Parliament  and  one  with  the  Cavaliers.  Neither 
Richard  or  Ralph,  the  remaining  sons,  made  much 
stir  in  the  world,  although  Richard  was  sent  to 
Parliament  from  Huntingdon  in  Queen  Elizabeth's 
time,  but  members  were  not  permitted  to  say  much 
in  those  days. 

In  April,  1603,  about  four  months  after  Sir 
Henry's  death,  King  James  lodged  two  nights  at 
Hinchenbrook.  He  was  at  the  time  traveling 
from  Scotland  to  ascend  the  English  throne,  and 
in  return  for  the  splendid  entertainment  of  him- 
self and  retinue,  the  third  member  of  the  Crom- 


70  Wadsworth 

well  family  was  knighted.  The  following  year 
in  September  another  member  of  the  Stuart  fam- 
ily lodged  at  Hinchenbrook.  The  guest  on  this 
occasion  was  Charles,  the  second  son  of  King 
James  and  then  known  as  Duke  of  York.  On  the 
morning  after  his  arrival  Robert  Cromwell  and 
his  wife,1  who  was  proud  of  her  connection  with 

1  Genealogists  have  shown  that  Oliver  Cromwell  and 
Charles  I.  were  distantly  related.  Both  of  them  were 
descended  from  Alexander,  the  Lord  High  Steward 
of  Scotland.  He  had  three  sons,  James,  John  and 
Andrew.  James  succeeded  to  the  hereditary  office  of 
his  father  and  transmitted  it  on  his  death  to  his  son 
Walter,  who  brought  the  Scottish  crown  into  the  fam- 
ily by  marrying  Margery,  the  eldest  daughter  of  Rob- 
ert Bruce  and  heiress  of  his  brother  David,  who  died 
without  issue.  Their  son  was  Robert  II.,  King  of 
Scotland,  the  line  of  succession  from  him  to  Charles 
I.  being  through  Robert  III.,  James  I.,  James  II., 
James  III.,  James  IV.,  James  V.,  Mary  and  James  VI., 
who  was  James  I.  of  England  and  father  of  Charles 
I.  The  second  branch  of  Alexander's  descendants 
through  his  son  are  known  in  history  as  the  Earls 
and  Dukes  of  Lennox,  and  was  joined  with  the  royal 
line  when  Lord  Darnley  married  Mary,  Queen  of 
Scots,  whose  only  child  was  the  first  of  the  ill-fated 
Stuarts  to  ascend  the  throne  of  England.  Andrew, 
the  third  son,  lived  at  Dundavale.  His  grandson  was 
appointed  one  of  the  attendants  of  James  I.  when  he 
was  sent  to  France  to  evade  the  intrigues  of  his  uncle, 
the  Duke  of  Albany.  The  vessel  in  which  they  sailed 
was  driven  on  the  English  coast  and  Henry  IV.  de- 
tained the  prince  and  his  suite  as  prisoners.  Growing 
restless  under  restraint  this  member  of  the  Steward 
family,  whose  name  was  John,  consented  to  fix  his 
residence  in  England  if  released.  He  married  advan- 
tageously and  was  knighted.  Elizabeth  Steward,  the 
mother  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  traced  to  this  grandson  of 


Memories  71 

the  Stuart  family,  although  it  was  rather  remote, 
called  at  Hinchenbrook,  taking  their  son  Oliver, 
then  a  rugged  boy  of  five  years,  with  them.  The 
boys  met  and  were  soon  on  good  terms,  as 
neither  of  them  had  arrived  at  the  age  which 
places  a  barrier  between  the  reigning  family  and 
a  subject.  While  romping  on  the  green  in  front 
of  the  manor  house  they  quarreled  and  before  the 
Prince's  attendants  could  interfere  Oliver  made 
the  blood  flow  from  the  Duke  of  York's  nose.  As 
soon  as  they  were  separated  Oliver  was  hur- 
ried away  in  disgrace,  while  the  Prince  proceeded 
to  London.  In  time  he  became  King  Charles  I, 
while  Oliver  grew  up  at  Huntingdon,  attended 
Dr.  Beard's  school  and  was  eventually  taken  to 

Alexander,  Lord  High  Steward  of  Scotland,  through 
William  Steward,  Archibald  Steward,  Richard  Steward, 
Thomas  Steward,  and  Sir  John  Steward.  When  Hen- 
ry VIII.  suppressed  the  monasteries  one  of  the  Stew- 
ards was  prior  of  Ely.  Like  his  first  ancestor  in  Eng- 
land he  preferred  a  good  living  to  the  stings  of  adver- 
sity and  became  the  first  Protestant  Dean  of  Ely. 
Thomas  Steward  succeeded  his  father  William  Steward. 
He  was  knighted  by  King  James  in  1604  and  farmed 
the  tithes  of  Ely  until  January,  1635-6,  when  he  died,  his 
sister's  son,  Oliver  Cromwell,  being  his  principal  heir. 
Had  the  Lord  Protector  accepted  Charles  II. 's  offer 
to  marry  his  daughter  Frances  the  third  branch  would 
have  been  joined  to  the  royal  line.  In  that  event  the 
remark  of  James  V.  that  the  crown  came  with  a  lass 
and  would  go  with  a  lass,  as  it  actually  did,  might  have 
been  forgotten  with  the  thousand  and  one  prophecies 
which  fail  to  materialize. 


72  Wadsworth 

Cambridge  by  his  father.  When  Oliver  and 
Charles  again  met  face  to  face,  the  latter  was  on 
trial  for  his  life  and  Cromwell  was  one  of  his 
Judges. 

Upon  the  death  of  his  father  in  1617,  Oliver  left 
Cambridge  and  returned  to  Huntingdon  to  assist 
his  mother  in  looking  after  their  estate  and  in 
rearing  his  six  sisters.  At  the  time  he  was  a  bold 
resolute  blade  who  had  few  equals  at  cudgeling 
and  quarterstaff,  and  a  temper  that  would  flare 
up  at  the  least  provocation.  He  never  made  any 
friends,  but  was  ever  ready  to'  have  a  bout  with 
anyone  of  his  years  in  Huntingdon  or  the  sur- 
rounding villages,  and  there  were  few  who 
bothered  him  after  the  first  encounter.  From 
the  day  that  he  quarreled  with  Prince  Charles  at 
Hinchenbrook,  strange  tales  were  told  of  Oliver 
Cromwell,  many  an  old  wife  in  the  fen  country, 
where  witches1  abounded,  shaking  their  heads  with 

1  Of  all  the  manias  which  have  affected  the  English 
speaking  race  the  one  against  witchcraft  has  left  the 
blackest  mark.  The  extent  to  which  it  was  carried 
by  enlightened  fanatics,  the  majority  of  whom  were 
men  of  influence,  although  for  some  reason  none  of 
them  were  tainted  with  it,  can  be  gathered  from  the 
laws  enacted  and  the  penalties  imposed.  In  1559 
Bishop  Jewell,  while  preaching  before  Elizabeth,  called 
attention  to  the  marvellous  increase  of  witches  and 
sorceresses  and  petitioned  the  Queen  to  have  laws  im- 
posed against  them.  In  accordance  with  the  good 
man's  wishes,  in  1562  at  the  next  session  of  Parlia- 
ment, a  bill  was  passed  making  enchantment  and 


Memories  73 

awe  as  they  told  of  the  gigantic  figure  that  ap- 
peared to  him  in  a  vision  and  said  he  would  be 

witchcraft  a  felony.  A  number  of  what  were  termed 
witches,  but  in  the  majority  of  cases  helpless  old  men, 
women  and  even  children,  were  convicted  under  it,  three 
being  hanged  at  Warboise  in  Huntingdonshire  in 
1593-  Under  James  I.,  who  had  before  leaving  Scot- 
land assisted  in  the  execution  of  several  warlocks  and 
witches,  this  law  was  amended  so  as  to  make  witch- 
craft punishable  by  death  and  without  the  benefit  of 
the  clergy.  This  law  was  not  repealed  until  1735.  the 
last  execution  under  it  being  in  1722,  when  an  old 
woman  was  burned  at  the  stake  in  the  north  of  Scot- 
land. At  Chelmsford  in  Essex  in  1645  there  were  thir- 
ty tried  at  once  by  Judge  Coniers  and  fourteen  of  them 
hanged,  and  a  hundred  or  more  detained  in  prisons  in 
Suffolk  and  Essex.  In  1716  a  woman  and  her  nine- 
year-old  daughter  were  hanged  at  Huntingdon,  the 
town  in  which  Cromwell  was  born,  and  he  in  all  prob- 
ability witnessed  the  execution,  for  selling  their  souls 
to  the  devil  and  raising  a  storm  by  pulling  off  their 
stockings. 

To  Hartford,  Connecticut,  belongs  the  doubtful 
honor  of  killing  the  first  witch  in  America.  In  1646  a 
person  of  Windsor  was  put  to  death  on  the  charge  of 
witchcraft  at  Hartford.  No  circumstances  have  been 
found  nor  the  name  of  the  sufferer.  June  15,  1648, 
Maynard  Jones  of  Charlestown  was  hanged  in  Bos- 
ton and  on  December  7  of  the  same  year  Mary  Johns- 
ton of  Windsor  was  hanged  at  Hartford  on  Rocky 
Hill,  the  present  site  of  Trinity  College.  In  1662-3 
Nathaniel  Greensmith  and  his  wife  Rebecca  were  tried 
for  witchcraft  and  convicted  in  Hartford.  Nathaniel 
Greensmith  was  executed  January  25,  1662-3.  There 
is  no  entry  to  show  whether  the  woman  was  hanged 
or  not.  By  the  above  it  will  be  seen  that  all  the 
witches  in  America  were  not  executed  at  Salem,  Mass., 
where  in  the  delusion  of  1692,  of  one  hundred  and 
thirty  person  accused,  seventeen  were  hanged  on  Gal- 
lows Hill  and  eleven  others  were  condemned  to  death, 
but  did  not  suffer. 


74  Wadswotth 

the  greatest  man  in  England,1  a  visitation  in  itself 
more  wonderful  than  the  phantom  ship  at  New 
Haven. 

As  Oliver  grew  to  man's  estate  the  burdens  of 
his  uncle  became  heavier,  until  finally  he  was 
forced  to  sell  Hinchenbrook  to  the  Montagues 
and  retire  deeper  into  the  fens.  Oliver  also  dis- 
posed of  his  father's  holdings  in  Huntingdon  and 
removed  to  St.  Ives  where  he  became  a  sheep 
farmer.  He  was  living  there  when  my  father 
sailed  from  London  in  1632  for  America.  Long 
before  these  changes  were  made,  my  father  ac- 
companied Oliver  on  one  of  his  trips  to  London, 

1  The  vision  or  dream  in  which  Oliver  Cromwell  was 
told  that  he  should  be  the  greatest  man  in  England 
made  an  impression  that  remained  through  life.  As 
with  Napoleon,  it  became  his  star  of  destiny  even  after 
being  flogged  by  Dr.  Beard  for  repeating  it  and  being 
told  by  his  uncle  Sir  Thomas  Steward  that  such 
thoughts  were  traitorous.  Noble  says  that  Crom- 
well mentioned  it  often  when  in  the  height  of  his 
glory  and  Clarendon  in  his  History  of  the  Rebellion 
and  Civil  War  in  England  says  that  during  the  delib- 
eration which  took  place  when  an  offer  of  the  crown 
was  made  him,  they  who  were  near  to  him  said  that 
in  this  perplexity  he  mentioned  his  former  dream  or 
apparition  that  had  first  found  and  promised  him  this 
high  future  to  which  he  was  already  arrived  and  which 
was  generally  spoken  of  even  from  the  beginning  of 
the  troubles,  and  when  he  was  not  in  a  position  that 
promised  such  exaltation;  and  that  he  then  observed, 
it  had  only  declared  that  he  should  be  the  greatest 
man  in  England  and  that  he  should  be  near  to  a  King, 
which  seemed  to  imply  that  he  should  be  only  near, 
and  never  actually  attain  the  crown. 


OLIVER   CROMWELL 


Memories  77 

where  he  was  married  in  1620  to  Elizabeth  Bour- 
chier.  While  casting  about  for  employment  he 
met  Daniel  Gookin,  with  whom  he  sailed  for  Vir- 
ginia. After  returning  to  England  he  married 
and  settled  in  Essex  at  Braintree,  where  he  re- 
mained until  he  and  his  four  children,  their 
mother  being  dead,  embarked  on  the  Lion. 

My  mother  before  marriage  was  Elizabeth  Stone, 
whom  father  married  in  Hartford  in  1644.  She  told 
me  that  before  leaving  England  he  traveled  to  St. 
Ives,  where  he  visited  Oliver  Cromwell  and  asked  his 
sister  Elizabeth  to  accompany  him  to  America  as 
his  wife.  She  would  not  come  unless  the  family  did, 
and  for  several  years  they  were  expected.  Whalley 
told  me  she  never  married.  It  is  also  well  known  in 
Connecticut  that  Oliver  Cromwell  intended  to  come 
to  New  England  with  John  Hampden  and  others  in- 
terested in  the  Warwick  patent,  a  plot  of  land  hav- 
ing been  prepared  for  them  at  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  now  known  as  Saybrook.1  When  on  the  ship 

1  John  Morley,  in  his  Oliver  Cromwell,  says  "There 
is  no  substance  in  this  fable,  though  so  circumstantially 
related;  that  in  1636  in  company  with  his  cousin 
Hampden,  despairing  of  his  country,  he  took  passage 
for  America  and  the  vessel  was  stopped  by  an  order 
in  council.  All  probabilities  are  against  it,  and  there 
is  no  evidence  for  it.  While  it  is  creditable  enough  in 
Clarendon's  story  that  five  years  later,  on  the  day  when 
the  Grand  Remonstrance  was  passed,  Cromwell  whis- 
pered to  Falkland  'That  if  the  Remonstrance  had  been 
rejected  he  would  have  sold  all  he  had  the  next  morn- 


78  Wadsworth 

they  were  stopped  by  an  order  from  the  King  who 
had  reason  to  repent  not  letting  them  go  to  the  wilds 
of  America. 

In  the  war  that  followed,  Oliver  Cromwell  and 
those  associated  with  him  in  the  Commonwealth, 
did  not  forget  those  who  had  crossed  the  ocean. 
John  Mason  was  one  of  the  leaders  remembered. 
He  was  offered  a  major-generalship  if  he  would  re- 
turn and  enter  the  Parliamentary  army,  but  he  de- 
cided to  remain  in  the  colony.  Israel  Stoughton, 
who  commanded  the  Massachusetts  forces  in  the 
Pequot  war,  returned  and  was  given  a  regiment  in 

ing  and  never  have  seen  England  more,'  and  he  knew 
there  were  many  other  honest  men  of  the  same  reso- 
lution." (Clarendon's  History  of  Rebellion  and  Civil 
War  in  England.)  The  histories  published  in  the 
eighteenth  century  refer  to  this  as  a  fact.  Hutchin- 
son  in  his  History  of  Massachusetts  Bay  says,  "In 
1635  there  was  a  great  addition  made  to  the  number 
of  inhabitants,  among  others  Mr.  Vane,  afterwards  Sir 
Harry  Vane,  *  *  *  *  and  many  other  persons  of 
figure  and  distinction  were  expected  to  come  over, 
some  of  which  are  said  to  have  been  prevented  by 
express  order  of  the  King,  as  Mr.  Pym,  Mr.  Hampden, 
Sir  Arthur  Hazelrigg,  Oliver  Cromwell,  etc.  I  know 
that  this  is  questioned  by  some  others,  but  it  appears 
very  plainly  by  a  letter  from  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  to 
Mr.  Vane  and  a  letter  from  Mr.  Cotton  to  the  same 
nobleman  as  I  take  it,  although  his  name  is  not  men- 
tioned, and  an  answer  to  certain  demands  made  upon 
him,  that  his  Lordship  himself  and  Lord  Brooke  and 
others  were  not  without  thought  of  removing  to  New 
England  and  that  several  others  persons  of  quality 
were  in  treaty  about  their  removal  also,  but  undeter- 
mined whether  to  join  th«*  Massachusetts  colony  or  to 
settle  in  a  new  colony." 


Memories  79 

Cromwell's  army,  while  after  peace  was  established 
and  Cromwell  was  in  the  saddle  Samuel  Disborow,1 
one  of  the  founders  of  Guilford,  married  Dorothy 
Whitfield,  sailed  with  her  father  for  England  and  in 
time  became  Keeper  of  the  Great  Seal  of  Scotland. 

1  Samuel  Disborow  was  born  in  the  manor  at  Ettisley 
in  Cambridgeshire,  November  20,  1619.  He  was  the 
third  surviving  son  of  James  Disborow,  who  married 
Jane,  sister  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  and  was  one  of  the 
Judges  appointed  to  try  Charles  I.  Samuel  Disborow 
studied  law  with  his  brother  John,  who  was  a  bar- 
rister, before  he  entered  the  Parliamentary  army.  In 
1639  he  decided  to  sail  for  America  and  in  May  of  that 
year  when  two  vessels  sailed  from  London,  he  was  on 
board  with  Henry  Whitfield  of  Ockley,  William  Leete, 
a  London  lawyer,  and  thirty-seven  sturdy  farmers 
from  Kent  and  Surrey.  After  a  voyage  of  forty-nine 
days  they  landed  at  New  Haven  and  in  September  of 
that  year  founded  Guilford.  In  that  year  Whitfield 
built  both  for  the  accommodation  of  his  family  and 
as  a  fortification  for  the  protection  of  the  inhabitants 
against  the  Indians,  what  is  now  known  as  the  "Old 
Stone  House  of  Guilford,"  supposed  to  be  the  oldest 
dwelling  house  now  standing  in  the  United  States. 
Samuel  Disborow  was  the  first  person  appointed  Mag- 
istrate in  Guilford.  He  retained  the  office  until  1651, 
when  after  marrying  Dorothy  Whitfield  he  sailed  for 
England  to  rise  to  power  with  Cromwell.  In  a  short 
time  Samuel  Disborow  became  Commissioner  of  the 
Revenues  and  member  of  Parliament  for  Edinburgh. 
He  was  then  appointed  one  of  the  Nine  Counsellors 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Scotland  and  soon  after  keeper  of 
the  Great  Seal  of  Scotland.  After  the  Restoration  he 
accepted  the  pardon  offered  by  Charles  II.  to  a  large 
class  of  Puritans  and  by  so  doing  saved  for  himself 
his  manor  at  Ellsworth,  where  he  died  aged  seventy- 
five,  December  10,  1690.  In  1651,  Henry  Whitfield 
also  returned  to  England,  where  he  became  one  of  the 
Commissioners  of  the  Revenues  and  in  1655  repre- 
sented the  City  of  Edinburgh  in  Parliament. 


80  Wadsworth 

THE    REGICIDES 


Mention  has  been  made  in  these  pages  of  the 
King's  Judges,  Whalley  and  Goffe,  both  of 
whom  died  in  my  brother-in-law's  house  at 
Hadley,  after  being  secreted  there  from  1664, 
when  they  were  compelled  to  leave  Milford 
on  account  of  a  commission  arriving  in  Bos- 
ton with  instructions  to  find  the  Regicides, 
both  of  whom  were  known  to  be  hiding  in  the  colony 
of  New  Haven.  Having  met  and  conversed  with 
both  of  these  men  while  they  were  in  John  Russell's 
house,  which  also  for  a  time  sheltered  a  third  Judge, 
John  Dixwell,  who  eventually  went  on  to  New 
Haven,  where  he  lived  until  1688,  the  year  James 
II.  was  driven  from  the  throne  and  Sir  Edmund  An- 
dros'  government  in  New  England  was  overthrown, 
I  will  write  what  I  know  of  them  as  well  as  the 
adventures  and  trials  which  they  had  to  contend 
with  until  death  released  them  from  confinement 
and  raised  the  possibility  of  being  arrested  for 
treason  from  the  shoulders  of  those  who  sheltered 
them. 

Edward  Whalley  was  a  merchant  when  the  re- 
bellion broke  out  in  England.  Entering  the  army 
he  soon  distinguished  himself  in  many  battles  and 
sieges.  At  Naseby,  where  he  fought  under  Crom- 
well, he  charged  and  defeated  two  divisions  of  Lang- 


Memories  81 

dale's  horse  and  for  which  Parliament  made  him  a 
Colonel  of  horse.  He  also  received  the  thanks  of 
the  Parliament  for  his  brilliant  action  at  Banbury 
the  following  year.  When  King  Charles  was  de- 
tained at  Hampton  Court,  Whalley  had  charge  of 
him  and  as  near  as  I  can  learn  permitted  him  to 
escape  in  the  hope  that  he  would  leave  England. 
The  King  fled  to  the  Isle  of  Wight,  where  he  was 
confined  in  Carisbrook  Castle  and  was  eventually 
taken  to  London,  where  he  was  tried  and  executed. 

William  Goffe  was  born  at  Stanmore  in  Sussex. 
His  father  was  a  minister  and  paid  great  attention 
to  the  education  of  his  three  sons.  Stephen  and 
John  were  sent  to  the  University  and  as  William  did 
not  develop  a  fondness  for  books  he  was  appren- 
ticed to  Vaughn,  a  salter  in  London.  John  became 
a  clergyman  of  the  established  church  and  Stephen, 
acted  as  agent  for  Charles  II.  in  France,  Flanders 
and  Holland,  turned  priest  and  became  chaplain  to 
Queen  Henrietta  Maria.  While  at  Vaughn's, 
William  Goffe  had  ample  opportunity  to  learn  of 
the  stand  which  the  Parliament  was  taking  against 
the  King,  and  being  imbued  with  the  Puritan  ideas 
of  his  father,  as  well  as  the  martial  spirit  of  the 
times,  when  the  war  broke  out  he  entered  the  army. 

In  the  camp  Goffe  excelled  as  a  prayer  maker  and 
preacher,  while  in  the  field  his  boldness  and  skill 
with  the  sword  soon  earned  promotion.  He  was 


82  Wadsworth 

one  of  the  first  to  proclaim  that  Charles  Stuart 
should  be  brought  to  account  for  the  blood  he  had 
shed  and  when  the  commission  of  one  hundred  and 
thirty  judges  was  appointed  to  try  the  king,  his 
name  was  on  the  list.  George  Fenwick,  who  re- 
turned to  England  from  Saybrook  the  year  before, 
was  also  named  as  a  judge.  Of  the  one  hundred 
and  thirty  selected  seventy-four  sat  in  judgment 
and  fifty-nine  signed  the  death  warrant,  Edward 
Whalley's  name  being  fourth,  those  preceding  him 
being  John  Bradshaw,  Thomas  Grey  and  Oliver 
Cromwell. 

When  the  King  came  to  his  own  again  in  1660, 
according  to  a  journal  kept  by  Goffe  and  what  I 
have  learned  since  his  death,  twenty-four  of  the 
Judges,  or  Regicides  as  they  were  designated  by  the 
Royalists,  were  dead,  twenty-seven  were  taken,  tried 
and  convicted,  some  of  them  being  pardoned,  while 
nine,  with  five  others  who  were  prominent  in  the 
affairs  of  the  Commonwealth,  were  executed.  Six- 
teen fled  and  escaped.  Of  the  latter,  Whalley,  Goffe 
and  Dixwell  died  in  New  England,  one  shot  him- 
self in  Holland  and  one  was  assassinated.  What 
became  of  the  others  is  unknown. 

Whalley  and  Goffe  sailed  from  London  before 
Charles  II.  was  proclaimed  King  and  arrived  in 
Boston  July  27,  1660.  They  were  received  very 
courteously  by  Governor  Endicott  and  went  on  to 


Memories  83 

Cambridge,  where  they  resided  while  in  that  vicin- 
ity. Their  grave  and  devout  manners  commanded 
the  respect  of  all  who  were  aware  of  the  rank  they 
sustained  under  the  Commonwealth  and  toward 
which  all  of  the  inhabitants  of  New  England  had  a 
leaning,  while  Goffe  made  all  Boston  ring  with  his 
praises  by  giving  a  vain  fencing  master  an  unmer- 
ciful drubbing.  This  impudent  fellow  erected  a 
stage  near  the  common  and  walked  it  for  several 
days  challenging  any  one  to  play  at  swords  with 
him.  Rumors  of  his  boasting  reached  Cambridge. 
Goffe  for  a  lark  disguised  himself  as  a  rustic  and 
armed  with  a  broom  stick,  the  mop  of  which  he  had 
besmeared  in  a  dirty  puddle  of  water,  and  a  cheese 
wrapped  in  a  napkin  for  a  shield,  mounted  the  stage 
and  offered  to  fight  him.  The  fencing  master  bade 
him  begone,  but  Goffe  insisted  upon  an  encounter. 
Aggravated  by  the  cheers  of  a  crowd  which  gath- 
ered quickly,  the  fencing  master  made  a  pass  at  him 
with  his  sword  to  drive  him  off.  Goffe  received 
the  sword  in  the  cheese  and  held  it  there  until  he 
drew  the  mop  of  the  broom  across  his  antagonist's 
mouth.  Breaking  loose  he  made  another  attack  only 
to  have  the  sword  again  stopped  in  the  cheese,  while 
the  broom  was  this  time  drawn  over  his  eyes.  At  a 
third  lunge  Goffe  stopped  him  in  the  same  manner, 
while  he  rubbed  the  mop  all  over  the  boaster's  face. 
Exasperated  by  the  treatment,  the  fencing  master 


84  Wadsworth 

dropped  his  small  sword  and  rushed  on  Goffe  with 
a  broadsword,  swinging  it  over  his  head  like  a 
Scotchman.  Goffe  who  had  nothing  but  a  broom  to 
defend  himself  with,  held  up  his  hand  and  bade  him 
stop  with  so  much  firmness  and  determination  that 
he  stood  with  the  sword  in  the  air.  Upon  this  the 
Judge  reminded  him  that  he  was  only  playing  with 
him,  but  that  if  it  came  to  broadswords  he  would 
take  his  life.  Dropping  his  sword  the  fencing  mas- 
ter asked  the  rustic  who  he  was  and  as  he  did  not 
receive  an  answer  he  said,  "You  are  either  Goffe, 
Whalley  or  the  devil,  as  no  other  man  in  England 
could  beat  me."  Goffe  stepped  from  the  stage  and 
disappeared,  but  it  was  not  long  before  every  one 
knew  the  name  of  the  man  who  had  clipped  the 
wings  of  the  boasting  fencing  master.1 

The  notoriety  which  Goffe  acquired  by  this  per- 
formance attracted  the  attention  of  a  man  named 
Brudan,  the  captain  of  a  vessel  lying  in  the  harbor. 
On  his  return  to  London  he  told  where  Goffe  and 
Whalley  were  and  as  soon  as  the  Court  learned  of  it 
steps  were  taken  to  apprehend  them.  In  the  interval 
the  Act  of  Indemnity  was  received  and  as  neither  of 
them  were  excepted  the  Governor  was  alarmed.  He 
called  the  Court  of  Assistants  together  in  February 
to  consult  about  securing  them,  but  the  Court  would 

1  History  of  the  Three  Judges  of  Charles  I.,  by  Ezra 
Stiles. 


Memories  85 

pot  agree  to  it.  Finding  it  unsafe  to  remain 
longer,  Whalley  and  Goffe  left  Cambridge  on 
February  26,  1661,  and  arrived  at  New  Haven, 
March  7,  having  stopped  at  Springfield  and  Hart- 
ford on  the  way.  A  few  days  after  their  depart- 
ure a  hue  and  cry  was  brought  by  way  of  Bar- 
badoes  and  on  March  8  a  warrant  was  issued  to 
apprehend  them.  It  was  sent  to  Springfield,  the 
western  boundary  of  the  Massachusetts  colony, 
but  the  Judges  were  beyond  the  reach  of  it. 

Finally  on  May  7,  Governor  Endicott  gave 
Thomas  Kellond  and  Thomas  Kirk  an  order  to 
make  a  search  for  Colonels  Goffe  and  Whalley. 
They  left  Boston  that  night  and  on  May  10  arrived 
at  Hartford,  where  they  were  informed  by  Gov- 
ernor Winthrop  that  the  men  they  were  seeking 
had  been  there,  but  had  gone  on  to  New  Haven.  The 
following  afternoon  Kellond  and  Kirk  were  at  Guil- 
ford,  where  William  Leete,1  the  Deputy  Governor, 

1  William  Leete  was  born  in  Huntingdonshire,  Eng- 
land, in  1613,  his  home  being  nine  mile  from  Crom- 
well's, while  he  was  a  neighbor  of  Samuel  Disborow, 
with  whom  he  and  Henry  Whitfield  were  associated 
in  founding  Guilford.  He  was  bred  to  the  law  and 
while  serving  as  clerk  of  the  Bishop's  court  at  Cam- 
bridge he  observed  the  cruelties  to  which  the  Puritans 
were  subjected.  After  examining  their  doctrine  he 
adopted  it,  resigned  office  and  in  1639,  when  twenty- 
six  years  old,  sailed  for  New  England.  During  his 
residence  in  Guilford  he  was  a  party  to  almost  every 
public  transaction,  being  clerk  of  the  town  for  twenty- 
two  years,  magistrate  from  1651,  the  years  that  Dis- 


86  Wadsworttt 

resided.  Upon  their  arrival  they  presented  a  letter 
from  Governor  Endicott  and  a  copy  of  His  Majes- 
ty's order  to  apprehend  the  Regicides.  Leete,  who 
was  at  the  time  acting  Governor  of  the  colony, 
Francis  Newman,  having  died  in  November  of  the 
preceding  year,  read  both  papers  aloud  so  that  every 
one  in  his  store  could  hear  their  contents.  When 
Kellond  and  Kirk  objected  to  such  a  course  he  told 
them  that  he  had  not  seen  the  Colonels  for  nine 
weeks  and  that  he  would  not  issue  an  order  to  search 
and  apprehend  without  consulting  the  magistrates, 
Matthew  Gilbert,  Robert  Treat  and  Jasper  Crane. 
Both  Kellond  and  Kirk  demanded  horses  to  con- 
tinue their  journey,  but  as  it  was  Saturday  and  the 
sun  had  set,  further  action  had  to  remain  in  abey- 
ance until  after  the  Sabbath. 

borow  returned  to  England,  until  1658,  when  he  was 
elected  Deputy-Governor  of  the  Colony  of  New  Haven. 
When  Governor  Newman  died  William  Leete  was 
chosen  to  succeed  him  and  remained  in  office  until 
1664,  when  the  New  Haven  Colony  was  united  with 
Connecticut.  In  the  Connecticut  government  he 
served  as  magistrate  from  1664  to  1669,  as  Deputy- 
Governor  from  1669  to  1676,  and  Governor  from  1676 
until  his  death  April  16,  1683.  When  elected  governor 
he  removed  to  Hartford,  where  he  died  and  was  buried 
in  the  burying  ground  of  the  First  Church.  For  over 
forty  years  his  acts  as  an  official  met  with  the  ap- 
proval of  the  freemen  he  represented.  No  greater 
tribute  could  be  paid  a  man.  The  Regicide  incident 
shows  him  to  have  been  a  man  of  great  courage  as  in 
tacitly  favoring  the  concealment  and  escape  of  Whal- 
ley  and  Goffe  he  risked  his  life  and  all  he  owned. 


Memories  87 

In  the  interval  a  swift-footed  Indian  was  dis- 
patched to  New  Haven  to  warn  the  Judges  as  well 
as  Rev.  John  Davenport1  and  William  Jones,2  who 
had  given  them  shelter  from  the  time  of  their  arri- 
val, except  for  a  day  or  two,  when  they  walked  over 
to  Milford  in  order  to  make  the  gossips  report  that 
they  had  gone  on  to  Manhadoes  (Manhattan)  to  take 

1John  Davenport  was  born  at  Coventry,  England, 
in  1597.  He  was  educated  at  Oxford  and  began  preach- 
ing in  London  in  1616.  In  1624  he  was  appointed 
vicar  of  St.  Stephen.  While  Bishop  of  London,  Laud 
regarded  him  with  suspicion,  and  when  he  became 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  in  1633,  Davenport  fled  to 
Holland.  While  in  Amsterdam  he  formed  the  idea 
of  establishing  a  colony  in  New  England  and  in  1636, 
with  that  object  in  view,  he  returned  to  London.  After 
consulting  with  his  former  parishioners  he  prevailed 
upon  Samuel  Eaton,  Theophilus  Eaton,  Edward  Hop- 
kins, Thomas  Grigson,  and  many  others  of  good  char- 
acter and  fortune,  to  embark  in  the  enterprise.  They 
arrived  in  Boston  June  26,  1637,  and  after  remaining 
there  for  nine  months,  while  engaged  in  selecting  a 
site  for  the  colony,  they  sailed,  on  March  30,  1638,  for 
Quinnipiack.  In  about  a  fortnight  they  arrived  at  the 
desired  port,  which  was  named  New  Haven.  John 
Davenport  remained  there  until  1667,  when  he  re- 
turned to  Boston.  He  died  March  n,  1670.  It  was 
Davenport's  influence  and  courage  that  saved  Whal- 
ley  and  Goffe,  while  his  interest  in  them  may  in  a 
great  measure  be  attributed  to  the  fact  that  he  was  a 
brother-in-law  of  the  Rev.  William  Hood,  who  was 
in  1644  ordained  reader  of  the  church  at  New  Haven. 
He  returned  to  England  and  was  afterwards  a  chap- 
lain to  Oliver  Cromwell. 

*At  the  time  the  Regicides  were  in  New  Haven,  Wil- 
liam Jones  was  a  new  comer.  He  married  as  a  sec- 
ond wife  Hannah,  the  youngest  daughter  of  Gov.  Ea- 
ton, in  London  in  1659,  and  arrived  in  New  Haven 


88  Wadsworth 

shipping  for  Holland.  Under  receipt  of  this  news 
they  slipped  out  of  town  and  hid  in  a  mill,  while  on 
the  following  day  John  Davenport  preached  from 
Isaiah  XVI,  3  and  4.  "Take  counsel,  execute  judg- 
ment, make  thy  shadow  as  the  night  in  the  midst  of 
noonday;  hide  the  outcasts,  betray  not  him  that 
wandereth.  Let  mine  outcasts  dwell  with  thee; 
Moab,  be  thou  a  covet  to  them  from  the  face  of  the 
spoiler." 

Before  break  of  day  on  Monday,  John  Megges 
came  from  Guilford  and  told  that  the  "red  coats" 
were  after  the  Judges  and  that  Dennis  Scranton  had 
told  where  they  were  in  hiding.  Also  when  Magis- 
trate Matthew  Gilbert  received  notice  from  Deputy 
Governor  Leete,  advising  him  that  a  meeting  would 
be  held  that  day  to  decide  what  steps  should  be 
taken  in  issuing  an  order  to  search  and  apprehend 
Colonels  Whalley  and  Goffe,  the  Marshal,  Thomas 
Kimberly,  decided  to  take  the  bull  by  the  horns  and 
seize  them  as  traitors.  Knowing  that  both  of  them 
had  been  seen  near  the  neck  bridge  he  rose  before 

with  his  wife  in  the  fall  of  1660,  when  they  took 
possession  of  Governor  Eaton's  estate  and  lived  in  his 
house,  which  was  opposite  Mr.  Davenport's.  The  Ea- 
ton house  was  the  finest  in  New  Haven,  having  nine- 
teen fireplaces  and  many  apartments.  The  Davenport 
house  is  described  as  having  thirteen  fireplaces  and 
many  apartments.  William  Jones  was  a  son  of  John 
Jones,  one  of  the  King's  Judges.  He  was  Deputy- 
Governor  of  Connecticut  from  1692  to  1697. 


Memories  89 

the  break  of  day  and  going  there  lay  in  wait.  Near 
midday  he  saw  both  of  them  coming  towards  him. 
Each  had  a  stout  staff,  but  so  far  as  he  could  see  it 
was  all  that  they  had  to  defend  themselves  with. 
Drawing  his  sword  he  rushed  out  and  demanded 
their  surrender  in  the  name  of  King  Charles. 
Whalley  asked  for  his  authority.  Waving  his  sword 
in  front  of  them,  the  Marshal  told  them  that  it  was 
his  authority  to  proceed  against  traitors.  Before  he 
had  the  words  out  of  his  mouth  Goffe,  with  nothing 
but  a  staff,  whipped  the  sword  out  of  Kimberly's 
hand  and  sent  it  flying  into  the  water.  With  a 
threat  that  he  would  return  to  New  Haven  and  se- 
cure sufficient  aid  to  arrest  them,  Kimberly  de- 
parted, while  Whalley  and  Goffe  hid  under  the 
bridge,  believing  that  a  searching  party  would  pass 
on  instead  of  making  an  examination  so  near  the 
scene  of  the  encounter.  While  lying  there  they 
heard  horses  approaching  and  after  they  had 
passed  over  the  bridge  they  saw  that  the  riders 
wore  the  King's  red  coats  which  their  old  leader, 
Oliver  Cromwell,  introduced  into  the  English 
army. 

As  soon  as  the  riders  disappeared  on  the  road  to 
New  Haven  both  Whalley  and  Goffe  started 
towards  Guilford,  skirting  the  road  whenever  pos- 
sible or  disappearing  in  the  bushes  if  they  saw  a 
traveler  approaching,  and  there  were  not  very  many 


90  Wadsworth 

of  them  in  those  days.  At  a  bend  of  the  road  about 
an  hour  after  they  left  the  bridge  they  saw  a  horse 
and  rider  coming1.  Concealed  behind  a  clump  of 
bushes  they  watched  him.  As  he  drew  near  both 
of  them  recognized  William  Leete.  Believing  they 
could  trust  him  they  stepped  to  the  side  of  the  road 
and  stood  uncovered  as  he  passed  by.  A  sad  smile 
was  their  only  greeting,  but  in  it  they  saw  safety  so 
far  as  he  was  concerned  and  they  also  felt  they 
could  trust  Jasper  Crane  of  Branford,  who  soon 
galloped  by  and  joined  Leete  near  the  foot  of  the 
hill.  That  night  both  Whalley  and  Goffe  returned 
to  New  Haven  and  slept  in  Governor  Eaton's  cham- 
ber. 

Deputy  Governor  Leete  and  Jasper  Crane  rode  on 
to  New  Haven,  where  the  Magistrates  and  the  four 
Judges  of  the  New  Haven  Court  convened.  For 
five  or  six  hours  they  were  on  the  point  of  issuing 
a  warrant,  and  part  of  it  was  written  when  Matthew 
Gilbert  and  Robert  Treat,  the  Magistrate  for  Mil- 
ford,  arrived  and  stopped  it.  They  suggested  that 
the  question  be  referred  to  the  Assembly,  which 
was  called  and  convened  within  four  days. 

When  advised  that  the  Deputy-Governor  and  his 
assistants  would  take  no  action  in  the  matter,  Kel- 
lond  and  Kirk  expostulated,  threatened  and  even 
went  so  far  as  to  state  that  the  Judges  were  hidden 
in  either  the  Davenport  or  Jones  house.  This  was 


Memories  91 

what  Dennis  Scranton  had  told  them  at  Guilford, 
and  when  they  made  the  statement  they  were  given 
permission  to  search  both  houses,  which  they  did 
without  finding  any  traces  of  the  fugitives.  As  they 
were  returning  disappointed,  an  Indian  who  had 
heard  of  a  reward  offered  for  information,  told 
them  that  both  of  the  Regicides  had  been  seen  in 
New  Haven  that  morning  (May  14)  and  that  they 
were  concealed  in  the  home  of  Mrs.  Eyers,1  who 
had  a  grand  house  with  four  porches,  on  the  creek. 
Kcllond  and  Kirk  went  to  the  house  in  haste  and 
on  reaching  it  found  all  of  the  doors  open  and  Mrs. 
Eyers  busy  in  her  flower  garden.  When  asked  if 
the  Regicides  were  there  she  answered  that  they  had 
been  there,  but  had  gone  into  the  fields  and  woods. 
Notwithstanding  her  fine  words  they  insisted  on 
searching  the  house  and  she  allowed  them  to  pro- 
ceed, but  they  were  again  unsuccessful.  Years  after 
it  was  learned  that  Whalley  and  Goffe  came  to  her 
house  that  morning  from  Jones's  and  were  concealed 
while  the  search  was  being  made  in  a  large  wains- 
cotted  closet  in  the  kitchen.  This  closet  had  a  door 

1  Mrs.  Eyers  was  a  daughter  of  Isaac  Allerton,  a  Bos- 
ton sea  captain  who  settled  in  New  Haven.  Her  hus- 
band was  also  a  sea  captain  who  sailed  up  the  Medi- 
terranean. Both  her  father  and  husband  were  lost  at 
sea,  leaving  her  a  young  widow  with  two  children. 
She  inherited  her  father's,  brother's  and  husband's  es- 
tates. She  never  married  again  and  died  in  1740,  be- 
ing over  one  hundred  years  old. 


92  Wadsworth 

which  when  shut  could  not  be  distinguished  from 
the  wall  and  all  over  it  on  the  outside  was  hung 
the  kitchen  furniture. 

As  soon  as  Kellond  and  Kirk  departed  the  Judges 
fled  to  the  woods,  where  they  lay  concealed  until 
joined  by  Jones,  Burril  and  Richard  Sperry,1  who 
conducted  them  to  the  house  of  the  latter  on  Mr. 
Goodyear's  farm  behind  the  West  Rock.  They 
had  been  in  this  asylum  only  a  few  hours  when  the 
red  coats  of  their  pursuers  were  seen  coming  up  a 
long  corduroy  road  which  led  through  a  morass. 
Rushing  from  the  house  into  the  woods  of  the  ad- 
joining hill  they  concealed  themselves  behind  Savin 
Rock.  When  Kellond  and  Kirk  came  to  the  house 
and  asked  for  the  Regicides  they  were  told  that  they 
had  been  there,  but  had  gone  into  the  woods.  Being 
without  authority  to  search  or  apprehend  they  de- 
parted and  went  on  to  Manhadoes  (Manhatten), 
going  from  there  to  Boston  by  sea. 

Whalley  and  Goffe  slept  that  night  under  a  bower 
made  of  bushes  and  on  the  following  day  entered 
the  cave  on  the  West  Rock,  where  they  remained 

1  Richard  Sperry  was  a  farmer  brought  from  Eng- 
land by  Mr.  Goodyear,  a  wealthy  merchant  who  had 
purchased  from  the  town  of  New  Haven  a  farm  of 
over  a  thousand  acres  and  located  beyond  the  West 
Rock.  Goodyear  built  Sperry  a  house  on  the  place 
and  subsequently  sold  him  the  farm,  which  remained 
in  the  possession  of  the  Sperry  family  for  over  a  cen- 
tury. 


Memories  93 

until  June  11,  Richard  Sperry  supplying  them  with 
food  from  his  house  about  a  mile  away.  On  the 
night  of  June  n  a  panther  or  catamount  put  his 
head  into  the  door  of  the  cave  and  affrighted  them 
so  that  they  fled  to  Sperry's  house  for  shelter.  Upon 
their  arrival  they  learned  of  the  report  which  Kel- 
lond  and  Kirk  had  made  to  Governor  Endicott  upon 
their  return  to  Boston,  and  that  their  friends,  the 
Rev.  John  Davenport,  William  Jones  and  William 
Leete,  who  was  on  May  29  chosen  Governor  of  the 
colony  of  New  Haven,  were  in  danger  of  being 
charged  with  sheltering  and  aiding  in  the  escape 
of  traitors.  Upon  receipt  of  this  news  both  of  them 
started  for  New  Haven,  where  after  consulting  bv 
proxy  with  Matthew  Gilbert,  who  was  then  Deputy 
Governor,  they  sent  a  messenger  to  Guilford  with 
advice  to  Governor  Leete  that  they  were  coming 
there  to  surrender.  Both  Davenport  and  Jones  did 
what  they  could  to  dissuade  them  from  taking  this 
step,  and  when  they  were  unable  to  make  them 
change  their  minds  they  decided  to  accompany  them 
in  the  hope  that  something  might  happen  on  the 
journey  to  keep  them  from  making  the  sacrifice. 
At  the  edge  of  the  town  they  met  their  messenger 
returning  in  company  with  Dr.  Bryan  Rossiter.3 
The  latter  bade  Whalley  and  Goffe  go  with  him, 

1  Dr.    Bryan    Rossiter  purchased    Samuel    Disborow's 
place  on  October  16,  1651. 


94  Wadsworth 

while  their  companions  proceeded  to  Governor 
Leete's  house  and  slept  there.  For  nine  days  the 
Judges  remained  in  Guilford  and  in  all  that  time 
the  Governor  refused  to  see  them.  During  the  day 
they  were  concealed  in  a  stone  cellar  under  Leete's 
store  on  the  bank  of  the  river,  their  victuals  being 
carried  to  them  from  the  Governor's  table.  Under 
cover  of  night  they  walked  to  Rossiter's  house  to 
sleep. 

Finally  their  friends  prevailed  on  them  to  recede 
from  their  determination  to  surrender  and  they  re- 
turned to  New  Haven,  where  after  appearing  pub- 
licly for  three  or  four  days  in  order  to  clear  Daven- 
port and  Jones  from  the  suspicion  of  sheltering 
them,  they  returned  to  the  cave  on  the  West  Rock, 
wandering  about  from  there  to  Totoket  (Branford), 
Paugasset  (Derby)  and  other  places  of  shelter  until 
August  19,  when  they  repaired  to  Milford,  where 
one  Tomkins  had  prepared  a  hiding  place  for  them 
in  the  center  of  the  town.  It  was  a  two  story  build- 
ing, twenty  feet  square,  located  within  a  few  feet 
of  Tomkins'  house.  The  lower  room  was  built  of 
stone  and  considered  a  store  room,  while  the  up- 
per room  was  finished  in  timber  and  used  as  a 
spinning  and  work  room  by  Tomkins'  family. 
Whalley  and  Goffe  remained  in  the  lower  room 
of  this  building  for  two  years  without  so  much  as 
going  into  the  orchard.  After  that,  when  the 


Memories  95 

New  Haven  people  had  apparently  forgotten  the 
declaration  which  the  commissioners  of  the 
United  Colonies  issued  at  Hartford,  September  5, 
1661,  warning  all  persons  not  to  receive,  harbor, 
conceal  or  succor  Whalley  or  Goffe,  they  took  a 
little  more  liberty,  made  themselves  known  to 
several  persons  and  frequently  prayed  and 
preached  at  private  meetings  in  their  chamber. 

In  1663  it  was  reported  at  the  Court  of  Charles 
II.  that  Whalley  and  Goffe  were  at  the  head  of  an 
army  in  New  England  and  that  the  union  of  the 
colonies  was  believed  to  have  been  made  for  the 
express  purpose  of  throwing  off  dependence  on 
England.1  When  Col.  Richard  Nichols,  George 
Cartwright,  Sir  Robert  Carr  and  Samuel  Maverick, 
the  Commissioners  from  King  Charles,  sailed  for 
Boston  the  following  year,  they  were  instructed  to 
find  the  Regicides.  Upon  the  news  of  their  arrival 
and  in  all  probability  on  advice  as  to  the  instruc- 
tions concerning  them,  Whalley  and  Goffe  returned 
to  the  cave  at  West  Rock  until  another  asylum 
could  be  prepared.  They  had  been  there  but  eight 
or  ten  days  when  an  Indian,  while  hunting,  dis- 
covered their  hiding  place.  The  report  being  spread 
abroad  it  was  not  safe  to  remain  there,  and  on  the 
following  night,  October  13,  1664,  Whalley  and 
Goffe,  after  a  residence  of  three  years  and  seven 

1  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States. 


96  Wadsworth 

months  in  New  Haven  and  Milford,  turned  their 
faces  towards  Hadley,  where  John  Russell,  the  min- 
ister of  the  town  founded  by  the  Hartford  "With- 
drawers,"  had  previously  agreed  to  receive  them. 
That  night  they  traveled  twenty  miles,  stopping 
for  the  day  in  the  woods  near  the  ford  over  a  brook 
on  the  road  to  Hartford.  They  called  the  place 
Pilgrim's  Harbor,1  and  it  is  still  known  by  that 
name.  Before  night  they  were  joined  by  a  guide 
with  horses.  He  conducted  them  to  Hartford,  where 
after  resting  a  day  in  John  Talcott's  house,2  they 
proceeded  to  Springfield,  and  from  there  to  Hadley, 
where  both  of  them  died  and  were  buried  in  the 
minister's  cellar. 

February  10,  1664-5,  John  Dixwell,  who  was  also 
a  King's  Judge,  came  to  the  Russell  house  and  re- 
mained there  with  Whalley  and  Goffe  until  after 
the  King's  Commissioners  had  made  their  report. 
He  then  removed  to  New  Haven,  where  under  the 
assumed  name  of  James  Daniels  he  settled  with  a 
family  named  Ling,  was  twice  married,  raised  a 
family,  and  died  in  1688,  aged  eighty-two.  He  was 
never  molested.  Two  or  three  years  before  Dix- 
well's  death,  while  attending  public  worship  in  New 
Haven,  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  who  was  at  that  time 

1  Pilgrim's  Harbor  is  located  in  the  town  of  Meriden. 

2  This  house  stood  at  the  corner  of  Main  and  Tal- 
cott  Streets.     It  was  torn  down  in  1900. 


Memories  97 

Governor  of  New  York,  saw  him  and  after  meeting 
asked  who  he  was.  Upon  being  informed  that  he 
was  a  merchant,  Andros  replied  that  he 
was  not  and  became  very  inquisitive.  Nothing  more 
was  heard  of  the  matter,  as  the  venerable  gentleman 
was  not  seen  at  the  meeting  in  the  afternoon,  and 
Sir  Edmund  was  so  exasperated  by  one  of  the 
psalms  sung  by  the  congregation  that  he  no  doubt 
forgot  all  about  him.1 

About  ten  years  after  Whalley  and  Goffe  removed 
to  Hadley,  the  former  began  to  fail  both  mentally 

1  At  this  meeting  the  deacon  gave  out  the  Fifty- 
second  Psalm  to  sing  in  Sternbold's  and  Hopkins'  ver- 
sion, which  began 

Why  dost  thou,  tyrant,  boast  abroad, 

Thy  wicked  works  of  praise? 
Dost  thou  not  know  there  is  a  God, 

Whose  mercy  lasts  always? 

Why   dost  thy  mind   still   devise 

Such  wicked   wiles   to  harp? 
Thy  tongue,  untrue,  in  forging  lies, 

Is  like  a  razor  sharp. 

Thou  dost  delight  in  fraud  and  guile, 

In  mischief,  blood  and  wrong; 
Thy  lips  have  learned  the  flattering  style, 

Of  false,   deceitful   tongue! 

Governor  Andros  felt  it  as  an  intended  insult  to 
himself,  and  after  meeting  resented  it  as  such,  and  rep- 
rehended the  deacon  for  it.  But  being  told  that  it 
was  the  usage  of  the  church  to  sing  the  Psalms  in 
course,  he  excused  the  deacon  and  let  the  matter 
drop. — Stiles'  History  of  the  Judges. 


98  Wadsworth 

and  physically.  At  the  time  of  the  King  Philip  war 
he  had  lost  all  interest  in  worldly  affairs  and  was 
almost  constantly  confined  to  his  bed.  Goffe  nursed 
and  humored  him,  doing  all  that  he  could  to  make 
the  last  days  of  his  companion  in  fortune  and  ad- 
versity comfortable,  and  while  he  remained  vigorous 
and  as  cheerful  as  a  man  could  under  such  con- 
ditions, he  frequently  complained  of  being  banished 
from  the  world  in  which  he  had  been  so  conspicuous 
a  figure,  and  to  the  last  clung  to  the  hope  that  his 
friends  in  England  would  eventually  secure  a  par- 
don. It  was  that  ray  of  hope  and  the  memory  of 
his  wife  and  family  at  home  which  kept  Goffe  from 
leaving  Hadley  after  Whalley  died. 

In  the  sixteen  years  that  Goffe  was  under  John 
Russell's  roof  he  was  never  seen  in  public  but  once, 
and  on  that  occasion  his  appearance  was  so  unex- 
pected and  his  exit  so  guarded  that  the  people  whose 
lives  were  saved  by  his  skill  looked  upon  the  mys- 
terious stranger  as  an  angel  instead  of  a  man  whose 
life  and  the  lives  of  all  who  sheltered  him,  together 
with  all  they  possessed,  would  have  been  forfeited 
to  the  crown  had  it  been  known.  It  was  on  Fast 
Day  in  1675  that  Goffe  saved  Hadley.  While  the 
people  were  attending  public  worship  the  town  was 
surrounded  by  a  body  of  Indians.  The  attack  was 
so  sudden  and  unexpected  that  everything  was  in 
confusion  before  the  meeting  house  guard  could 


Memories  99 

rally  those  who  had  brought  arms  with  them.  Sudj 
denly  a  venerable  man,  whose  apparel  and  manner 
differed  from  the  rest  of  the  people,  appeared  in 
their  midst,  took  command,  arranged  them  in  the 
best  military  manner  and  routed  the  Indians.  The 
town  was  saved,  and  while  the  Hadley  forces  were 
pursuing  the  assailants  the  leader  disappeared  as 
mysteriously  as  he  came.  Of  all  who  saw  him, 
the  minister,  John  Russell,  alone  knew  to  whom 
they  owed  their  homes  and  their  lives. 

In  the  spring  of  1679,  Whalley  having  been  dead 
some  time,  Goffe  came  down  the  river  to  Hartford, 
intending  to  go  on  to  New  Haven  and  Milford  for 
a  brief  period.  While  here  he  was  concealed  in  the 
house  of  Joseph  Bull  and  was  visited  by  myself 
and  a  few  others  who  were  in  the  secret.  Through 
a  servant,  his  presence  became  known  to  one  John 
London,  of  Windsor,  who  in  the  hope  of  reward 
associated  himself  with  several  others  and  decided 
to  seize  him  in  the  King's  name.  Thomas  Powell 
overheard  them  discussing  their  plans  and  informed 
Major  Talcott.  He  recommended  that  Goffe  return 
to  Hadley,  which  he  did,  and  Captain  Allyn  forbade 
London  to  leave  the  town  without  a  license.  This 
unexpected  discovery  made  an  old  man  of  Goffe. 
He  saw  that  after  nineteen  years  he  was  still  in 
peril.  After  his  return  to  Hadley  he  was  seized 
with  a  fit  of  melancholy,  under  which  he  sickened 


100  Wadswoiih 

and  died  early  in  the  following  year.  London  also 
disappeared  and  nothing  more  was  heard  of  him 
or  his  threats  until  the  following  spring,  when  Sir 
Edmund  Andros  wrote  Governor  Leete1  that  he  had 
learned  from  depositions  taken  in  New  York  that 
Colonel  Goffe,  the  Regicide,  was  concealed  in  Hart- 
ford by  Captain  Joseph  Bull  and  his  sons.  Upon 
receipt  of  this  advice  John  Allyn  commanded  the 
constables  to  make  diligent  search  in  the  houses, 
barns  and  outhouses  of  Captain  Bull  and  his  sons. 
No  such  person  was  found,  Goffe  having  returned 
to  Hadley  over  a  year  before  and  was  so  far  as  I 
know  dead  at  the  time  the  notice  was  received. 

1  For  correspondence  see  Colonial  Records  of  Con- 
necticut covering  years  1678-1689,  pages  283  to  285. 


THE  CHARTER  OAK 


THE  CHARTER  OAK 


George  Wyllys  was  the  third  Governor  of  Con- 
necticut and  the  first  of  that  name  in  New  England. 
Being  a  Puritan,  he  decided  in  1637  to  leave  Eng- 
land, and  in  order  to  make  a  home  for  himself  in 
the  New  World  before  leaving  the  family  mansion 
at  Fenney  Compton,  at  Knapton,  in  the  county  of 
Warwick,  he  sent  his  steward,  William  Gibbons, 
with  twenty  men  and  the  frame  of  a  house,  to  select 
a  site  in  the  town  which  the  Hooker  company  had 
started  in  the  Connecticut  valley.  For  about  two 
years  William  Gibbons  and  the  men  in  his  employ 
were  busy  felling  trees,  building  and  preparing  the 
soil  for  the  seed  on  the  home  lot  assigned  George 
Wyllys.  It  was  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Little 
River,  running  back  from  the  top  of  the  hill  upon 
which  but  one  tree  was  permitted  to  remain  stand- 
ing. It  was  a  gnarled  oak  with  a  hole  in  one  side 
of  it,  and  that  tree  still  stands1  on  the  brow  of  the 
hill  by  the  road  leading  down  to  the  South  Meadows. 

1  The  Charter  Oak  fell  August  21,  1856.  A  marble 
tablet  has  been  inserted  in  a  brick  wall  on  Charter 
Oak  Avenue  to  designate  the  place  where  it  stood. 
All  of  the  wood  and  bark  were  preserved,  being  made 
into  chairs,  small  tables,  picture  frames,  etc.,  and  Ex- 
Governor  Morgan  G.  Bulkeley  tells  me  that  there  is 
somewhere  in  Hartford  a  piano  made  of  the  wood  of 
the  Charter  Oak. 


104  Wadsworth 

The  Suckiag  Indians,  who  were  here  when  what 
they  called  the  big  canoes  with  white  wings  were 
first  seen  on  the  river,  and  from  whom  the  Hooker 
company  purchased  the  site  of  Hartford,  asked  Will- 
iam Gibbons  to  spare  it,  as  in  addition  to  being  a 
landmark  the  oak  was  the  peace  tree  of  the  tribe. 

The  sachem  Sequassen  said  that  the  tree  was 
planted  by  the  great  sachem  who  led  his  people 
from  the  land  of  the  setting  sun  as  a  pledge  of  per- 
petual peace  with  those  whom  they  found  here  and 
from  whom  they  received  the  land.  At  the  planting 
their  tomahawks1  were  buried  under  it  and  the  acorn 
adopted  as  their  totem.  For  centuries  the  Suckiag 
Indians  lived  in  peace,  fishing  in  the  great  river  and 
its  branches  and  hunting  in  the  forest,  while  the 
squaws  and  the  old  men  planted  the  corn  and  beans 
which  Kiehtan  sent  them  from  the  southwest.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Indian  tradition,  the  corn2  was 

1  The  English,  when  adopting  the  name  of  the  Indian 
hatchet,  called  it  tom-my-hawk.  The  Indians  say 
tume-hegan,  the  e  being  short,  and  scarcely  sounded, 
with  the  short  sound  of  a  and  the  h  has  a  full  aspirate 
as  hee.  The  gn  is  sounded  short.  This  word  is  com- 
pounded of  the  Indian  verb  tume-ta-mun,  to  cut,  and 
the  noun  hegun,  a  sharp  cutting  instrument.  In  com- 
pounding this  word  half  of  the  verb  is  clipped  off  and 
joined  with  the  noun. 

*  The  Southern  Indians  have  the  following  tradi- 
tion concerning  the  origin  of  corn,  beans  and  tobacco: 
"Two  youths,  while  pursuing  the  pleasures  of  the 
chase,  were  led  to  an  unfrequented  part  of  the  forest, 
where,  being  fatigued  and  hungry,  they  sat  down  to 


The  Charter  Oak  105 

brought  by  the  sacred  blackbird  and  the  bean  by  the 
crow,  the  former  being  first  seen  in  the  slender 
branches  of  the  peace  tree  when  the  leaves  were  the 
size  of  a  mouse's  ear,  and  by  this  they  fixed  the  time 
for  placing  the  corn  in  the  ground. 

As  the  generations  of  Indians  were  gathered  to 
their  long  sleep,  the  oak  increased  in  size  and  was 
known  as  a  landmark  and  meeting  place  for  all  the 
tribes  on  the  river.  In  the  fourth  generation  before 
the  coming  of  the  white  man,  Wawanda,  the  sach- 
em's favorite  wife,  bore  him  male  twins,  and  in  the 
year  of  their  birth  a  sprout  appeared  on  the  north- 
east side  of  the  oak.  It  was  permitted  to  remain, 
and  as  the  boys,  who  were  named  Saweg  and  No- 
washe,  each  of  them  being  given  a  portion  of  their 

rest  themselves  and  to  dress  their  victuals.  While 
they  were  in  this  employ  the  spirit  of  the  woods,  at- 
tracted by  the  savory  smell  of  the  venison,  approached 
them  in  the  form  of  a  beautiful  female  and  seated  her- 
self beside  them.  The  youths,  awed  by  the  presence 
of  so  superior  a  being,  presented  to  her  in  the  most 
respectful  manner  a  share  of  their  repast,  which  she 
was  pleased  to  accept,  and  eat  with  satisfaction.  The 
repast  being  finished,  the  female  spirit  informed  them 
that  if  they  would  return  to  the  same  place  after  the 
revolution  of  twelve  moons  they  would  find  something 
which  would  recompense  their  kindness,  disappeared 
from  sight.  The  youths  returned  at  the  appointed 
time  and  found  that  upon  the  place  on  which  the  right 
arm  of  the  goddess  had  reclined  a  stalk  of  corn  had 
sprung  up;  under  her  left,  a  stalk  of  beans,  and  from 
the  spot  on  which  she  had  been  seated  was  growing 
a  flourishing  plant  of  tobacco." 


106  Wadsworth 

father's  name,  Sawashe,  grew  in  years,  the  sprout 
became  a  twig  and  finally  a  branch  as  large  as  a 
man's  arm.  In  this  limb  the  powwows  and  a  few  of 
the  sagamores  saw  the  sign  of  a  split  in  the  tribe. 
At  different  times  they  urged  its  removal,  but  Sa- 
washe, proud  of  the  skill  and  rugged  strength  of 
the  twin  brothers,  although  they  were  almost  oppo- 
sites  in  disposition,  would  never  consent,  as  he  be- 
lieved that  the  great  father  Kiehtan1  placed  it  there 

1The  Connecticut  Indians  believed  in  one  great  and 
invisible  Deity,  who  was  known  in  the  different  tribes 
as  Kiehtan,  Woonand  and  Cantantowit.  The  Indians 
placed  the  dwelling  of  Kiehtan  in  the  southwest  be- 
cause the  wind  from  that  quarter  is  the  warmest  and 
pleasantest  that  blows  in  this  climate  and  usually 
brings  fair  weather.  They  also  believed  that  the  soul 
existed  after  death  and  that  the  spirits  of  the  good 
would  go  to  the  house  of  Kiehtan.  Then  they  would 
be  delivered  from  sorrow  and  enjoy  pleasures  similar 
to  those  which  they  had  indulged  in  here,  only  in 
abundance  and  in  perfection.  They  also  believed  that 
the  wicked  would  go  to  the  door  of  Kiehtan  and 
knock  for  admittance;  but  upon  his  telling  them  to  go 
away,  they  would  be  obliged  to  wander  forever  in  a 
state  of  horror  and  discontent.  The  Narragansett  In- 
dians believed  that  Cantantowit  made  a  man  and 
woman  of  stone,  but  not  liking  them  he  broke  them 
to  pieces  and  made  another  pair  of  wood,  from  whom 
all  human  beings  were  descended.  Another  tribe,  when 
questioned  as  to  their  creation,  said  that  two  squaws 
were  once  wading  in  the  sea;  the  foam  touched  their 
bodies  and  they  became  pregnant;  one  brought  forth 
a  boy  and  the  other  a  girl;  the  two  squaws  then  died 
and  their  children  became  the  progenitors  of  the  hu- 
man race. — Massachusetts  Historical  Collections,  Vol. 
III.,  and  De  Forest's  History  of  Indians  of  Connecti- 
cut. 


The  Charter  Oak  107 

to  show  that  another  branch  had  been  added  to  the 
tribes  which  had  lived  for  so  many  years  on  the 
bank  of  the  great  river  and  that  they  would  flourish 
under  the  protection  of  the  Mohawks  so  long  as  it 
retained  life.  Saweg  was  the  elder  of  the  twins, 
and  from  an  early  age  he  was  noted  for  his  even 
temper  and  deliberate  methods.  The  old  men  of 
the  tribe  gave  him  their  confidence,  while  they 
looked  with  distrust  upon  Nowashe,  who  was  im- 
pulsive and  fearless  and  also  the  acknowledged 
leader  of  all  the  young  men. 

A  few  years  after  Saweg  and  Nowashe  were 
born,  the  Mohawks  swept  over  the  Connecticut  val- 
ley like  a  storm  cloud,  destroying  or  exacting  tribute 
from  all  who  lay  in  their  path.  Sawashe  heard  of 
their  coming,  and  knowing  that  the  hearts  of  his 
warriors  had  grown  soft  after  years  of  peace,  bade 
his  sagamores  carry  presents  of  wampum  and  offer 
tribute  to  the  Mohawks  if  they  were  permitted  to 
remain  undisturbed  in  their  villages  and  among 
their  cornfields.  The  offer  was  accepted,  while  the 
tribes  that  resisted  were  conquered  or  destroyed. 
From  that  period  until  the  coming  of  the  white 
man,  every  year  two  old  Mohawks  might  be  seen 
going  from  village  to  village  to  collect  tribute  and 
issue  orders  from  the  council  at  Onondaga.  To  the 
tribes  living  on  the  Connecticut  River  this  tribute 
in  wampum  did  not  prove  a  burden,  as  Long  Island 


108  Wadsworth 

was  then  and  for  many  years  thereafter  known  as 
the  land  of  shells  (Sewan  Hacky).  During  the 
summer  months  the  canoes  crossed  the  Sound  and 
returned  loaded  with  conches  and  mussels  which 
the  squaws  and  arrowhead  makers  fashioned  into 
wampum,  white  and  purple,  during  the  winter 
months. 

To  Saweg,  the  visit  of  the  Mohawks  was  a  re- 
minder of  a  greater  and  fiercer  race  of  men,  and 
with  the  knowledge  that  he  would  in  time  be  sachem 
of  his  tribe,  he  steeled  himself  to  bear  without  bit- 
terness the  boasts  and  petty  insults  which  were  at 
times  cast  upon  them  by  those  who  came  to  collect 
tribute.  As  a  boy,  Nowashe  sat  at  their  feet  and 
heard  with  delight  the  sayings  of  the  strangers  as 
they  glowed  with  danger  and  daring,  but  when  he 
arrived  at  an  age  to  learn  that  his  own  people,  as 
well  as  his  own  father  and  mother,  were  among 
those  who  had  been  humbled  by  the  Mohawks  his 
heart  was  pierced  with  Hobbamocko's1  black  arrow 
of  revenge  and  from  that  time  his  one  thought  was 
how  he  could  free  the  world  of  the  hated  Mohawks 
or  get  beyond  their  power.  He  had  learned  that 

1  Hobbamocko  was  the  spirit  of  evil,  the  author  of 
all  plagues  and  calamities.  From  the  fear  that  his 
malignant  disposition  inspired  he  received  great  ven- 
eration. Many  dances  were  performed  in  his  honor, 
and  many  sacrifices  made  to  appease  his  wrath. 


THE   CHARTER  OAK    IN    1830 


The  Charter  Oak  111 

the  field  of  their  triumphs  extended  from  the  father 
of  waters  to  the  inland  seas  and  the  falling  waters,1 
that  all  who  obeyed  them  and  paid  tribute  were  at 
peace  and  all  who  resisted  were  hunted  like  the  deer 
in  autumn.  To  obey  meant  humble  comforts,  to 
rebel,  death. 

This  was  the  state  of  affairs  in  the  tribe  dwelling 
under  the  shadow  of  the  peace  tree  on  the  banks 
of  the  Little  River,  when  Sawashe  died  and  Saweg 
was  named  sachem,  regardless  of  the  protests  of 
Nowashe,  who  claimed  that  being  of  one  birth  they 
should  rule  jointly  until  one  died.  In  this  conten- 
tion he  was  supported  by  his  mother  and  the  young 
men  of  the  tribe,  but  the  sagamores  shook  their 
heads  and  said  that  Saweg  was  the  older  son  and 
in  the  event  of  his  death  Saweg's  son  and  not  No- 
washe would  be  sachem.  There  was  no  appeal,  as 
the  Mohawks  knew  that  Saweg  would  succeed  his 
father  and  he  had  also  sent  a  runner  to  Onondaga 
with  presents  of  purple  wampum  and  advice  of  Sa- 
washe's  death. 

Nowashe  and  those  who  supported  him  in  his 
claim  remained  silent  until  the  Mohawks  made  their 
next  visit.  It  was  in  the  summer  when  the  corn 
was  beginning  to  grow  hard  and  as  they  sat  with 
Saweg  and  his  council  under  the  old  oak  smoking 

1  Niagara  Falls. 


1 12  Wadsworth 

the  peace  pipe,  Nowashe  approached.  The  Mo- 
hawks bade  him  enter  the  circle,  but  instead  of 
doing  so  he  cast  a  bundle  of  arrows  in  front  of 
them  and  said  "this  is  the  tribute  of  Nowashe." 
The  older  Mohawk  raised  the  arrows  from  the 
ground  and  drawing  one  from  the  thong  which  held 
them  together  broke  it  and  threw  the  pieces  outside 
of  the  circle,  while  Saweg  did  what  he  could  to  con- 
vince the  tribute  collectors  that  the  tribe  was  not 
responsible  for  his  brother's  act.  Nowashe  remained 
standing  with  his  arms  crossed  on  his  breast,  and 
when  his  brother  demanded  an  explanation  for  his 
hostile  act  he  turned  towards  the  Mohawks  and 
pointing  towards  the  remaining  arrows  said,  "Let 
my  words  and  tribute  sink  into  your  hearts,"  and 
walked  away. 

The  Mohawks  departed  to  all  appearances  satis- 
fied with  Saweg's  explanations  and  nothing  more 
was  heard  of  the  incident  until  it  was  noticed  that 
the  leaves  on  the  branch  of  the  peace  tree  were 
withering.  An  examination  showed  that  the  limb 
had  been  girdled  near  the  trunk,  while  on  the  same 
day  Saweg  learned  from  a  young  man  who  had 
been  down  to  Rocky  Hill  that  Nowashe,  who  had 
reported  that  he  and  his  friends  were  going  on  a 
big  hunt,  had  spoken  with  a  forked  tongue,  as  they 
were  building  a  fort  on  the  top  of  a  precipitous  hill 


The  Charter  Oak  113 

near  the  Roaring  Brook  which  runs  through  what 
is  now  known  as  Glassenbury.1 

Saweg  sent  his  father's  brother,  the  oldest  and 
wisest  man  in  the  tribe,  to  remonstrate  with  No- 
washe  and  to  remind  him  that  their  land  did  not 
extend  beyond  the  great  river,  but  Nowashe  re- 
fused to  talk  with  him.  He  then  sent  his  mother 
and  when  she  failed  to  return  he  went  himself  and 
as  sachem  demanded  obedience.  In  reply  to  Sa- 
weg's  orders  Nowashe  appeared  and  said  that  his 
young  men  and  their  squaws  had  no  wampum  for 
the  Mohawks  and  that  they  had  resolved  to  with- 
draw from  Saweg's  tribe,  build  a  fort,  defend  them- 
selves in  the  position  which  they  had  selected  and 
maintain  their  right  to  hunt  in  the  forest  on  the  side 
of  the  great  river  on  which  they  were  located.  Sa- 
weg pleaded  long  and  earnestly  with  his  brother 
and  when  after  many  talks  he  found  that  his  advice 
was  rejected  he  withdrew,  but  not  before  he  re- 
minded Nowashe  and  his  young  men  that  the  Mo- 
hawks were  brave  warriors,  that  their  number  was 
like  the  leaves  of  the  forest  and  that  with  his  small 

1  The  founders  of  this  town  having  come  from  the 
neighborhood  of  Glastonbury,  England,  the  General 
Court,  in  1692,  with  a  disregard  for  spelling,  named 
the  town  Glassenbury.  This  method  of  spelling  the 
name  of  the  town  continued  to  be  used  until  about 
1780,  when  it  was  changed  to  Glastenbury  and  so  writ- 
ten until  1870,  when  the  town  voted  to  make  it  Glas- 
tonbury, by  which  name  it  is  now  known. 


114  Wadsworth 

force  resistance  would  in  the  end  mean  death  for 
all  of  them.  The  brothers  parted  in  anger,  Nowashe 
boasting  that  he  would  fight  and  kill  all  the  Mo- 
hawks that  could  be  sent  against  him,  while  Saweg 
and  his  sagamores,  having  a  knowledge  of  what 
had  happened  in  the  past,  returned  to  their  villages 
in  silence. 

For  two  corn  plantings  Nowashe  and  his  forces 
remained  undisturbed.  During  that  period  rocks 
and  logs  had  been  carried  up  the  hill  and  laid  within 
the  palisades  of  the  fort  so  that  they  could  be  rolled 
down  upon  any  force  which  might  attack  it.  They 
also  built  a  village  at  the  foot  of  the  hill,  planted 
corn  and  beans,  fished  in  the  river  and  hunted  in 
the  forest.  In  that  time  the  Mohawks'  tribute  col- 
lectors made  their  regular  visits,  received  the  wam- 
pum expected  of  Saweg's  tribe  and  went  on  their 
way  to  other  villages  just  as  though  Nowashe  and 
his  fort  existed  only  in  his  imagination  instead  of 
being  a  stern  reality  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the 
Connecticut  River. 

On  the  other  hand  Nowashe  knew  that  the  pro- 
longed silence  on  the  part  of  the  Mohawks  could 
not  be  construed  as  indifference  on  their  part,  as 
the  council  at  Onondaga  was  well  advised  of  what 
he  had  done  and  was  either  engaged  in  greater  en- 
terprises or  waiting  until  time  would  give  his  young 
warriors  a  careless  sense  of  security,  which  would 


The  Charter  Oak  115 

present  an  opportunity  to  attack  them  when  off  their 
guard  or  when  a  majority  of  them  were  away  on  a 
hunt.  By  spies  and  friends  in  the  villages  between 
the  two  great  rivers,  Nowashe  was  constantly  ad- 
vised of  the  Mohawks'  movements  and  when  the 
second  leaves  were  falling  on  his  wigwam,  he 
learned  that  the  Mohawks  were  coming.  Upon  re- 
ceipt of  this  advice  the  whole  tribe,  including  wom- 
en and  children,  were  gathered  within  the  fort  and 
on  the  following  day  they  saw  the  Mohawks  cross- 
ing the  river  in  canoes  belonging  to  Saweg's  tribe. 

Knowing  that  Nowashe  had  a  small  force  and 
confident  of  success,  the  Mohawks  proceeded  against 
the  fort  as  soon  as  all  of  their  warriors  had  disem- 
barked. With  a  yell  that  had  chilled  the  blood  of 
so  many  of  their  enemies  they  rushed  up  the  hill 
to  be  met  not  with  a  cloud  of  arrows  as  they  ex- 
pected, but  by  huge  logs  and  rocks  which  as  they 
bounded  from  ridge  to  ridge  tore  holes  in  their 
ranks  and  killed  and  maimed  a  number  of  their  bold- 
est warriors.  Gathering  up  their  dead  and  wounded 
they  retired  to  the  village  and  burned  it.  Three 
times  on  successive  days  they  returned  to  the  at- 
tack, but  with  no  better  success. 

When  the  morning  of  the  fourth  day  dawned 
they  had  disappeared,  a  few  of  Saweg's  canoes  on 
the  river  bank  and  three  or  four  dead  Indians  on 
the  side  of  the  hill  being  all  that  was  left,  aside 


116  Wadsworth 

from  the  ashes  where  the  village  stood,  to  remind 
Nowashe  and  his  followers  of  the  visit  of  the  Mo- 
hawks. Later  in  the  day  it  was  learned  from  the 
trail  that  the  attacking  force  had  gone  up  the  river 
and  a  small  number  were  dispatched  to  follow  them. 
A  week  passed  without  anything  being  heard  from 
the  enemy  or  those  who  were  watching  them.  Be- 
lieving that  they  had  returned  home,  a  number  of 
the  women  and  children  came  down  from  the  fort 
and  were  soon  busy  gathering  material  for  new 
wigwams,  while  Nowashe,  after  sending  the  heads 
and  hands  of  the  dead  Mohawks  to  his  brother  as 
an  evidence  of  his  prowess,  joined  with  the  pow- 
wows in  the  dances  of  victory. 

The  Mohawks  followed  the  bank  of  the  river  to 
the  falls  which  are  above  the  point  where  William 
Pyncheon  built  his  warehouse,  and  remained  there 
for  a  number  of  days  in  order  to  give  the  wounded 
time  to  recover  from  their  injuries.  Knowing  that 
they  were  being  watched  by  the  Nowashe  scouts 
they  did  what  they  could  to  convey  the  impression 
that  they  were  going  to  return  to  their  own  people, 
the  whole  body  crossing  the  river  by  the  ford,  which 
can  still  be  located  below  the  point,  and  marching 
rapidly  inland.  For  two  days  they  continued,  but 
on  the  night  of  the  third  those  who  had  escaped 
injury  in  the  attacks  on  the  forts  left  the  wounded, 
who  were  now  able  to  travel  and  protect  themselves 


The  Charter  Oak  117 

if  attacked,  and  turned  towards  the  Connecticut 
River.  Evading  the  Nowashe  scouts,  they  again 
crossed  the  river  at  the  ford1  and  disappeared  in  a 
southeasterly  direction. 

The  Nowashe  scouts  also  returned  and  after 
crossing  the  ford  struck  the  new  trail  made  by  the 
Mohawks.  They  followed  it  until  they  came  to  the 
head  waters  of  Roaring  Brook,  near  Minachaug 
mountain.  Here  all  traces  ceased.  Turning  their 
faces  towards  the  Connecticut  River  they  followed 
the  stream  which  they  knew  led  to  their  fort.  Si- 

1  The  ford  referred  to  is  opposite  Windsor  Locks. 
The  late  Jabez  Haskell  Hayden,  in  his  Historical 
Sketches,  devotes  a  chapter  to  "The  old  fording  place 
opposite  Windsor  Locks."  He  says  "Very  many  years 
ago,  doubtless  more  than  two  hundred,  this  fording 
place,  the  only  one  in  the  colony,  was  discovered,  and 
used  even  after  the  opening  of  the  ferry  in  1783." 
Writing  in  1900  (the  old  gentleman  died  in  1903)  he 
said  "The  last  time  I  crossed  the  ford  was  more  than 
thirty  years  ago,  when  I  was  induced  to  go  by  two 
little  boys  of  about  ten  years  growth,  who  wanted  to 
wade  across  the  Connecticut  River  just  once.  The 
water  was  very  low,  and  taking  the  hand  of  each  we 
entered  the  ford  below  the  mouth  of  Kettle  Brook 
and  easily  waded  to  the  point,  where  we  made  directly 
for  the  'Old  Horse  Pasture.'  Then  we  crossed  the 
channel,  where  the  water  was  so  deep  and  the  cur- 
rent so  strong  the  boys  would  hardly  have  kept  their 
feet  under  them  if  they  had  not  clung  to  me.  We 
crossed  to  the  other  side  and  returned  in  safety,  but 
I  could  not  have  been  induced  to  try  the  same  feat 
again."  The  "Old  Horse  Pasture"  is  an  island  which 
appears  in  the  river  at  low  water  and  between  which 
and  the  east  shore  is  the  deep  water  where  Mr.  Pyn- 
chon  anchored  his  sea-going  vessel  in  1636. 


118  Wadsworth 

lently  and  swiftly  they  made  their  way  through  the 
rough  country  drained  by  the  Roaring  Brook,  being 
awed  by  the  disappearance  of  the  broad  trail  which 
led  them  to  the  Minachaug  mountain,  and  eager  to 
report  the  fact  to  Nowashe.  As  they  approached 
the  river  from  the  top  of  a  hill  they  saw  a  great 
smoke  and  in  a  short  time  they  met  a  few  squaws 
and  children  running  for  their  lives.  From  them 
they  learned  that  the  Mohawks  had  returned,  taken 
and  burned  the  fort  and  killed  everyone  in  it,  No- 
washe being  one  of  the  last  to  fall  in  the  terrible 
slaughter. 

Subsequent  events  showed  that  the  Mohawks  had 
entered  the  Roaring  Brook  at  the  place  where  the 
trail  disappeared  and  waded  down  the  entire  dis- 
tance to  near  the  fort.  Nowashe  and  his  people 
were  surprised,  many  of  them  being  killed  before 
they  could  seek  the  shelter  of  the  fort  and  when 
they  did  get  within  the  palisades  the  enemy  was  on 
them  before  the  logs  and  stones,  of  which  they  had 
a  great  quantity,  could  be  hurled  down  upon  them. 
All  of  the  righting  men  of  the  tribe,  as  well  as  many 
of  the  squaws  and  grown  children  who  mixed  in 
the  melee,  were  killed.  The  few  who  remained, 
together  with  those  who  were  absent  from  the  vil- 
lage, were  granted  their  lives  upon  payment  of  trib- 
ute in  wampum,  the  greater  portion  of  which  was 
advanced  by  Saweg,  who  interceded  for  the  unfor- 


The  Charter  Oak  119 

tunate  followers  of  his  brother.  The  Mohawks 
also  required  them  to  build  another  village  between 
the  Podunk  and  the  Scantic  and  almost  opposite  the 
cornfields  and  a  small  village1  of  Saweg's  tribe. 
They  remained  in  this  place  until  they  sold  the 
lands  to  the  Windsor  plantation  in  1636. 

This  little  band  was  always  referred  to  as  the 
Nowashe  Indians,  the  name  of  their  first  sachem 
being  adopted  by  them,  but  after  the  sale  of  their 
lands  the  tribe  lost  its  identity  and  was  absorbed 
by  the  Podunks  and  Mohegans.  It  may  also  be 
added  that  it  was  opposite  the  Nowashe  village, 
which  was  then  surrounded  by  palisades,  that  Adra- 
ien  Block  cast  anchor  when  he  sailed  up  the  river 
in  the  Restless  and  named  it  de  Versche  Reviere 
(the  Fresh  River)  in  1814,  and  upon  whose  right 
of  discovery  and  a  subsequent  purchase  from  the 
Pequots  the  Dutch  laid  claim  to  the  Connecticut 
valley. 

None  of  the  river  Indians  ever  forgot  the  deter- 
mined manner  in  which  the  Mohawks  stamped  out 
the  spirit  of  resistance  shown  by  Nowashe  and  his 
followers,  and  from  that  day  until  long  after  the 
white  man  controlled  the  colony  of  Connecticut 
many  a  squaw  and  white  woman  as  well  subdued 

1The  village  referred  to  was  located  at  what  is  now 
known  as  Wilson's,  a  small  station  on  the  New  York 
and  New  Haven  R.  R.,  about  two  miles  north  of  Hart- 
ford. 


120  Wadsworth 

a  rebellious  child  by  saying  "the  Mohawks  are  com- 
ing."1 That  the  fear  of  the  Mohawks  was  not  con- 
fined only  to  women  and  children  was  shown  in 
1656,  when  Uncas  and  Sequassen  had  a  quarrel 
with  Tontonimo,  a  Podunk  sachem.  The  latter  re- 
fused to  surrender  a  young  man  named  Weass- 
apano  who  had  murdered  a  sagamore  living  near 

1  Tradition  tells  of  a  brave  tribe  of  aborigines  which 
occupied  a  position  a  little  south  of  the  centre  of  Glas- 
tonbury,  known  by  the  name  of  the  Red  Hill  Indians. 
They  were  a  branch  of  the  Pequots,  and  between  them 
and  the  Mohawks  there  were  unsparing  and  relentless 
hostilities.  The  Red  Hills  had  a  fort  on  a  very  pre- 
cipitous hill,  which  was  strongly  fortified  on  the  east; 
but  towards  the  river,  on  the  west,  the  besieged  relied 
principally  on  large  logs  and  stones,  which  they  rolled 
down  upon  their  enemies,  if  they  attempted  to  ascend 
the  eminence.  Spies  and  friendly  Indians  informed  the 
Red  Hills  of  the  advance  of  their  enemies,  who  imme- 
diately gathered  their  women  and  children  within  the 
fort;  and,  on  several  occasions,  made  a  gallant  defence, 
repelling  the  Mohawks  with  great  loss.  At  length  the 
Mohawks,  whose  numbers  far  exceeded  those  of  the 
Red  Hills,  and  who  had  usually  made  their  most  des- 
perate effort  by  trying  to  ascend  the  hill,  resorted  to 
stratagem.  Word  came  to  the  Red  Hills  that  the  "Mo- 
hawks were  coming,"  and  they  hastily  gathered  their 
little  tribe  within  the  fort.  But  the  Mohawks  did  not 
make  their  appearance,  and,  after  waiting  for  some 
time  in  vain,  the  Red  Hills  despatched  a  small  number 
up  the  river,  for  the  purpose  of  reconnoitering.  Near 
the  upper  part  of  East  Windsor  or  Enfield,  the  party 
struck  upon  a  trail,  which  they  followed  in  a  south- 
easterly direction  until  they  came  to  the  head  waters 
of  Roaring  Brook,  near  Minachaug  mountain.  Here 
all  traces  ceased.  No  trail,  nor  track,  nor  scent  could 
be  found.  Subsequently  events  showed  that  the  Mo- 


The  Charter  Oak  121 

Mattabesett.1  The  three  sachems  submitted  their 
differences  to  the  English,  and  when  Governor 
Webster  supposed  that  Tontonimo  would  surrender 
the  murderer,  the  latter  returned  to  the  Podunk 
fort  and  sent  a  messenger  who  said  that  Weasse- 
apano  had  so  many  friends  that  he  could  not  sur- 
render him.  Finally  the  English  decided  that  they 
would  not  trouble  themselves  with  the  Indians' 
quarrel  and  gave  Uncas  and  Sequassen  to  under- 
stand that  they  could  follow  their  own  counsel. 
Taking  advantage  of  this  advice  Uncas  assembled 
a  war  party  and  marched  against  the  Podunks.  He 
met  them  near  the  Hockanum  River  and  as  their 
forces  were  about  equal  Uncas  was  unwilling  to 
fight,  but  before  retreating  sent  a  message  to  tell 
Tontonimo  that  if  he  continued  to  shelter  the  mur- 

hawks  had  at  this  place  entered  the  stream,  and,  that 
they  might  not  be  traced,  had  waded  down  the  entire 
distance  to  near  the  mouth,  where  were  the  fort  and 
village  of  the  Red  Hills.  The  scheme  was  successful. 
The  hapless  Red  Hills  were  surprised  and  experienced 
more  than  savage  vengeance.  The  Mohawks  spared 
not  one  of  the  race.  This  horrid  butchery  is  said  to 
have  taken  place  about  the  period  when  the  first  set- 
tlers emigrated  to  Connecticut.  Although  the  whites 
had  no  part  in  this  tragedy,  the  bloody  legend  was  re- 
membered and  told;  and  the  forward  child  was  often 
subdued  by  the  terrific  exclamation,  "the  Mohawks 
are  coming." — Barber's  Connecticut  Historical  Collec- 
tions. 
1  Middletown. 


122  Wadsworth 

derer  he  would  bring  the  Mohawks  and  destroy 
both  him  and  his  people. 

A  few  weeks  later  the  wily  Mohegan  sent  a  war- 
rior supplied  with  Mohawk  weapons  to  the  Podunk 
country  where  he  set  fire  to  a  wigwam  near  the  fort 
and  escaped,  leaving  his  arms.  In  the  morning, 
when  the  Podunks  came  out  of  the  fort  to  examine 
the  ruins  and  look  for  the  trail  of  the  destroyer, 
they  found  the  weapons  which  they  knew  by  their 
make  and  ornaments  must  have  been  fashioned  by 
a  Mohawk.  Believing  that  Uncas  had  succeeded 
in  fulfilling  his  threat  and  blinded  with  terror,  with- 
out making  any  inquiry,  Tontonimo  surrendered 
Weassapano  and  asked  for  peace.1  It  was  granted, 
and  from  that  time  the  Podunks  remained  undis- 
turbed until  after  the  King  Philip  war,  in  which  a 
majority  of  their  warriors  were  slain.2  When  King 
Philip  was  shot,  the  remnant  of  the  Podunk  tribe 
was  scattered,  many  of  them  joining  the  Pequots, 
while  a  few  crossed  the  river  and  allied  themselves 
with  the  Suckiag,  Poquonoc  and  Tunxis  Indians. 
As  the  land  which  they  occcupied  was  vacated  it  was 
parcelled  out  to  those  who  had  taken  an  active  part 

'Trumbull's  History  of  Connecticut  and  De  Forest's 
History  of  the  Indians  of  Connecticut. 

1  The  Podunk  tribe  in  King  Philip's  war  contained 
between  two  and  three  hundred  men,  who  went  off  in 
that  war  and  never  returned. — Massachusetts  Histori- 
cal Collections,  Vol.  4. 


The  Charter  Oak  123 

in  the  war,  my  reward  being  three  hundred  and 
forty  acres1  in  the  great  swamp  and  which  I  after- 
wards sold  to  Lieutenant  John  Ellsworth,  who  was 
killed  on  the  place  by  a  tree  falling  on  him. 

After  the  defeat  and  death  of  Nowashe  the  Mo- 
hawks remained  with  Saweg's  tribe  for  several  days, 
celebrating  their  victory  and  at  the  same  time  giving 
the  wounded  an  opportunity  to  recover  before  start- 
ing on  the  march  to  Onondaga.  During  this  period 
the  sagamores  and  powwows  of  the  tribe  met  under 
the  oak  and  in  the  presence  of  the  Mohawks  re- 
moved the  dead  limb  from  the  peace  tree,  charring 

JThe  plot  of  land  referred  to  is  located  in  the  town 
of  Ellington,  which  was  originally  a  part  of  the  town- 
ship of  East  Windsor.  The  following  is  from  the  or- 
iginal record:  "Land  surveyed  to  Daniel  and  John 
Ellsworth,  sons  of  Lieutenant  John  Ellsworth  of  Wind- 
sor, by  Thomas  Kimberly,  surveyor  of  land  in  the 
County  of  Hartford,  i6th  of  March,  1720,  five  hundred 
and  forty  acres  of  land  between  the  mountains  east  of 
Windsor  and  Connecticut  River,  at  a  place  called  by 
the  English  'the  great  marsh'  and  by  the  Indians 
Weaxkashuck,  three  hundred  and  forty  acres  bought 
of  Captain  Wadsworth  and  two  hundred  acres  bought 
of  the  Bissels  by  said  Lieutenant  John  Ellsworth,  be- 
gan at  a  pine  tree  marked  and  having  two  mere  stones 
by  it,  standing  on  the  plains  near  the  northwest  cor- 
ner of  said  marsh,  etc."  Barber,  in  his  Historical  Col- 
lections of  Connecticut,  says  that  on  a  stone  a  little 
distance  northwest  from  the  residence  of  Samuel 
Chapman,  who  lived  on  this  land  when  the  book  re- 
ferred to  was  published  in  1836,  the  following  inscrip- 
tion appears:  "Lieut.  John  Ellsworth  was  killed  here 
by  the  fall  of  a  tree  Oct.  26th,  1720,  aged  49  years  and 
15  days." 


124  Wadsworth 

it  near  the  trunk  with  fire  and  reducing  it  to  ashes 
as  soon  as  it  fell.  This  limb,  as  has  been  stated, 
was  on  the  northeast  side  of  the  tree  and  in  the 
years  which  followed,  the  rain  and  the  snow,  rein- 
forced by  the  heat  and  the  frost,  caused  the  balance 
of  the  branch  to  decay  and  make  a  hole  in  the  side 
of  the  oak. 

In  those  years  the  sachemship  of  the  tribe  de- 
scended from  Saweg  to  his  son,  who  was  in  time 
succeeded  by  Sowheag,  the  father  of  Sequassen, 
the  leader  of  the  Suckiag  Indians  when  the  white 
man  came  to  the  Connecticut  valley.  Having  been 
defeated  by  the  Pequots,  from  whom  the  Dutch 
traders  had  purchased  a  title  to  a  portion  of  the 
land  occupied  by  his  tribe,  he  hailed  the  coming  of 
the  Hooker  company  with  delight  and  sold  its  mem- 
bers the  site  of  Hartford  for  a  few  coats,  blankets, 
knives  and  hoes.  The  transfer  was  made  under 
the  old  oak  on  what  was  afterwards  the  Wyllys 
home  lot,  Elder  William  Goodwin  and  my  uncle, 
Samuel  Stone,  acting  for  the  English,  and  Sequas- 
sen, who  signed  the  deed  with  an  acorn  totem, 
acted  for  the  Suckiag  tribe,  all  of  his  sagamores 
being  present  and  giving  their  consent  to  the  trans- 
fer. 

After  the  deed  had  been  signed  a  twig  and  a 
piece  of  turf  were  handed  Sequassen  by  one  of  the 
sagamores.  He  stuck  the  twig  in  the  turf  and 


The  Charter  Oak  125 

placed  both  in  Elder  Goodwin's  hands.  By  this 
ceremony  he  considered  himself  to  have  passed  over 
to  the  English  the  soil  and  all  that  grew  on  it.  This 
was  the  Indians'  last  meeting  under  the  tribe's  peace 
tree,  and  except  when  they  asked  William  Gibbons 
to  spare  it,  the  old  oak1  did  not  attract  very  much 

'The  Political  Annals  of  the  United  Colonies  from 
the  Settlement  to  the  Peace  of  1763  by  George  Chal- 
mers and  published  in  London  in  1780  contains  the  first 
mention  of  hiding  the  Connecticut  Charter  in  a  tree. 
He  says  that  "Connecticut  with  the  other  colonies  con- 
gratulated James  II.  on  his  accession  to  the  throne, 
acknowledge  his  authority  and  begged  for  protection 
of  their  chartered  privileges.  He  received  the  com- 
pliment with  satisfaction,  though  he  had  already  de- 
cided what  course  he  should  pursue  with  regard  to 
colonial  policy.  Various  articles  of  Misdemeanor  were 
exhibited,  in  July,  1685,  against  the  Governor  and 
Company,  before  the  lord  commissioners  of  colonies, 
impeaching  them  of  making  laws  contrary  to  those  of 
England;  of  extorting  unreasonable  fines;  of  intoler- 
ance in  religion;  of  denials  of  justice.  These  various 
accusations  which  were  supposed  to  infer  a  forfeiture 
of  the  Charter,  were  instantly  sent  to  Sawyer,  attorney 
general,  with  orders  to  issue  a  writ  of  quo  warranto 
forthwith  against  the  colony.  He  obeyed  and  Ran- 
dolph, who  had  acted  as  a  public  accuser,  now  offered 
his  services  to  carry  it  beyond  the  Atlantic.  The  Gov- 
ernor and  Company  had  for  some  time  seen  the  storm 
approaching  which  threatened  to  lay  their  beloved 
system  in  the  dust;  and  they  endeavored  with  great 
address,  to  elude  the  force  of  what  they  were  unable 
to  resist.  When  they  remembered  the  fatal  accident 
which  had  formerly  bereaved  them  of  their  ancient 
conveyance,  they  carefully  concealed  the  Charter  in  a 
venerable  elm  which  to  this  day  is  deemed  sacred  as 
the  preserver  of  their  constitution."  That  Chalmers  re- 
ceived this  item  from  the  Rev.  Samuel  Peters,  who  was 


126  Wadsworth 

attention  until  after  the  overthrow  of  the  Andros 
government.  Mistress  Ruth  Wyllys  was  bold  enough 
to  say  that  I  hid  the  charter  in  it  the  night  that  it 
disappeared  from  the  council  chamber. 

then  in  London,  is  evidenced  by  the  following  sentence 
from  Peters'  General  History  of  Connecticut  which  was 
published  in  1781.  "They  have  represented  the  Magis- 
trates of  Connecticut  as  not  having  resigned  their 
Charter,  but  by  an  erroneous  construction  put  on  their 
humble  supplication  to  James  II.  by  the  Court  of  Lon- 
don: whereas  the  fact  is,  they  resigned  it,  in  propria 
forma,  into  the  hands  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros,  at  Hart- 
ford in  October,  1687,  and  were  annexed  to  the  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  Colony  in  preference  to  New  York,  ac- 
cording to  royal  promise  and  their  own  petition.  But 
the  very  night  of  the  surrender  of  it,  Samuel  Wads- 
worth,  of  Hartford,  with  the  assistance  of  a  mob,  vio- 
lently broke  into  the  apartments  of  Sir  Edmund,  re- 
gained, carried  off,  and  hid  the  charter  in  the  hollow 
elm."  Further  on  in  the  same  work,  when  enumerating 
the  curiosities  in  Hartford,  he  refers  to  "an  elm,  es- 
teemed sacred,  for  being  the  tree  in  which  their  Char- 
ter was  concealed."  The  substitution  of  an  elm  for  an 
oak  in  Peters'  history  will  not  surprise  anyone  who  has 
read  the  work  published  by  that  worthy  divine,  who 
was  forced  to  flee  from  Lebanon  and  eventually  left 
the  country  on  account  of  his  tory  principles.  In  a 
geography  published  in  1789  Jedidiah  Morse  wrote: 
"In  1684,  the  charters  of  Massachusetts  Bay  and  Ply- 
mouth were  taken  away  in  consequence  of  quo  war- 
rantos  which  had  been  issued  against  them.  The  char- 
ter of  Connecticut  would  have  shared  the  same  fate, 
had  it  not  been  for  —  -  Wadsworth,  Esq.,  who  hav- 
ing very  artfully  procured  it  when  it  was  on  the  point 
of  being  delivered  up,  buried  it  under  an  oak  tree  in 
Hartford,  where  it  remained  until  all  danger  was  over, 
and  then  was  dug  up  and  reassumed."  Trumbull  in  his 
History  of  Connecticut  which  was  published  in  1797. 
says  that  the  Charter  was  "secreted  in  a  large  hollow 
tree  fronting  the  house  of  the  Hon.  Samuel  Wyllys." 


THE   ROYAL  OAK 


THE  ROYAL  OAK 


The  Indian  deed  and  the  promise  of  the  War- 
wick patent  were  the  foundation  of  all  land  titles 
in  Connecticut  until  May  10,  1662,  when  the  char- 
ter granted  by  Charles  II.  passed  the  seals.  It  was 
issued  upon  the  application  of  the  colony  through 
John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  who  took  a  draft  of  what  was 
wanted  with  him  when  he  sailed  for  England  and 
who  was  so  fortunate  as  to  secure  the  co-operation 
of  his  old  patron,  Lord  Say  and  Seal,1  the  Earl  of 
Manchester  and  many  other  Puritan  sympathizers 
who  had  influence  at  Court  through  having  been 
instrumental  in  bringing  about  the  Restoration. 

Before  taking  up  the  Charter,  I  purpose  devoting 
a  few  pages  to  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  and  the  King, 
whose  miraculous  escape  after  the  battle  of  Worces- 
ter has  been  told  time  and  again  by  the  firesides  of 
New  England,  a  version  of  it  having  been  brought 
over  by  Winthrop,  who  had  it  from  the  King  him- 
self.2 Other  incidents  in  connection  with  it  have 

1  William,  first  Viscount  and  second  Baron  Say  and 
Seal,  was  made  Lord  of  the  Privy  Seal  at  the  Restora- 
tion.   He  died  April  14,  1662.    He  was  active  to  the  end 
of  his   days,   as    Pepys    speaks   of  meeting   him  at   the 
Lord's  House  on  April  7  of  same  year. 

2  Peter    Cunningham   says   that   Charles    II.   loved   to 
talk  over  the  incidents  of  his  life  to  every  new  face  that 
came  about  him,  and  especially  his  escape  from  Wor- 


130  Wadsworth 

been  sent  from  time  to  time  to  the  people  of  Hart- 
ford by  relatives  living  in  the  counties  that  His 
Majesty  crossed  while  seeking  a  vessel  to  carry 
him  to  France,  and  it  was  the  knowledge  of  this 
adventure  that  prompted  Mistress  Ruth  Wyllys, 
when  I  brought  her  the  charter,  to  bid  me  conceal 
it  in  the  hollow  oak,  just  as  the  King  who  granted 
it  found  shelter  in  the  foliage  of  an  oak  when  his 
life  was  in  peril  and  of  which  all  Englishmen  sing, 
The  Royal  Oak  it  was  the  tree 
That  saved  his  royal  majesty. 
Possibly  in  years  to  come  the  descendants  of  those 
who  lived  and  acted  in  Hartford  when  Sir  Edmund 
Andros  was  here  to  do  the  bidding  of  King  James, 
may  also  sing, 

The  Charter  Oak  it  was  the  tree 
That  saved  the  people's  liberty. 

cester.  Burnet  says  that  he  went  over  it  so  often  that 
those  who  had  been  long  accustomed  to  it  usually  with- 
drew. On  the  other  hand  Sheffield  says  that  many  of 
his  ministers,  not  out  of  flattery,  but  for  the  pleasure 
of  hearing  it,  affected  an  ignorance  of  what  they  had 
heard  ten  times  before.  This  love  of  talking  made 
King  Charles  fond  of  strangers  who  would  listen  to 
his  stories  and  went  away  in  raptures  at  such  an  un- 
common condescension  in  a  Monarch;  while  the  same- 
ness in  telling  caused  Lord  Rochester  to  observe  that 
"he  wondered  to  see  a  man  have  so  good  a  memory  as 
to  repeat  the  same  story  without  losing  the  least  cir- 
cumstance, and  yet  not  remember  that  he  had  told  it  to 
the  same  persons  the  day  before."  (See  Lord  Roches- 
ter to  Saville,  relative  to  Mulgrave's  Essay  on  Satire. 
Malone's  Life  of  Dryden,  Burnet,  etc.) 


The  Royal  Oak  131 

John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  who  was  in  1635  designated 
in  the  commission  granted  by  the  Warwick  pat- 
entees as  Governor  of  the  River  Connecticut,  with 
places  adjoining  thereto,  and  who  was  at  a  later 
date  Governor  of  Connecticut,  and  died  in  1676 
while  holding  that  office,  was  born  at  Groton  in 
Suffolk,  England,  February  12,  1605-6.  He  was 
fitted  for  college  at  the  free  grammar  school  found- 
ed by  Edward  VI.  at  Bury  St.  Edmunds  and  after 
studying  at  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  was  admitted 
a  barrister  of  the  Inner  Temple  in  London,  Febru- 
ary 28,  1624-5.  As  secretary  of  Captain  Best,  on 
the  ship-of-war  Dere  Repulse,  he  served  under  the 
Duke  of  Buckingham  in  the  effort  to  release  the 
French  Protestants  at  La  Rochelle. 

Upon  the  return  of  the  fleet  he  departed  for  the 
continent  and  for  a  year  and  a  half  traveled  in 
Europe,  going  as  far  east  as  Constantinople.  On 
February  8,  1631,  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  married 
Martha  Fones,  whose  sister  was  the  wife  of  his 
brother  Henry,  and  in  August  of  that  year  he  and 
his  wife  sailed  for  Boston  on  the  ship  Lion.  They 
were  ten  weeks  at  sea  and  arrived  in  Boston  No- 
vember 4,  1631.  The  following  March  he  was 
elected  Assistant  in  Massachusetts.  In  March, 
1632-3,  he  made  a  settlement  at  Agawam,  a  name 
that  was  afterwards  changed  to  Ipswich,  and  re- 
sided there  until  September,  1634,  when  his  wife 


132  Wadsworth 

and  daughter  died.  A  few  weeks  later  he  sailed  for 
England,  where  early  in  the  following  year,  he  was 
employed  by  Lord  Say  and  Seal  and  Lord  Brooke 
to  found  a  plantation  in  Connecticut,  the  commission 
granted  him  bearing  the  date  of  July  15,  1635,  and 
as  has  been  stated,  made  him  Governor  of  the  River 
Connecticut  with  places  adjoining  thereto  for  one 
year  after  his  arrival.  Before  sailing  for  New  Eng- 
land John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  married  Elizabeth,  daugh- 
ter of  Edmund  Read  and  step-daughter  of  Rev. 
Hugh  Peters,1  who  afterwards  became  chaplain  to 
Oliver  Cromwell.  Winthrop  and  his  second  wife 
arrived  in  Boston  on  the  Abigail,  October  6,  1635, 
in  company  with  his  step-father-in-law,  Hugh  Pe- 
ters, and  young  Harry  Vane,  who  was  in  due  time 
elected  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  and  after  his 
return  to  England,  became  a  power  in  the  Com- 
monwealth. 

1  Hugh  Peters,  a  native  of  Fleury  in  Cornwall,  was 
expelled  from  St.  John's  College,  Cambridge,  for  ir- 
regularity. He  was  then  an  actor  and  afterwards  took 
orders  and  was  celebrated  for  his  buffoonery  in  the 
pulpit.  He  was  so  bitter  against  Charles  the  First  that 
at  the  Restoration  he  was  excepted  in  the  act  of  pardon 
and  was  hanged  and  quartered  in  1660.  Heath,  in  his 
narrative  which  was  published  during  the  reign  of 
Charles  II.,  refers  to  Peters  in  the  list  of  Regicides  as 
follows:  Hugh  Peters,  the  shame  of  the  clergy,  a 
pulpit  buffoon,  a  seditious  abominable  fellow,  trumpeter 
of  their  pageantry  of  a  high  court  of  Justice,  the  most 
unparalleled  ecclesiastic  in  all  story  or  times. 


The  Royal  Oak  133 

As  soon  as  he  was  settled  comfortably  in  Boston, 
John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  sent  a  party  of  twenty  men  to 
found  a  settlement  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut 
River.  The  subsequent  struggles  of  this  outpost  in 
the  wars  and  disputes  with  the  Pequots,  is  a  portion 
of  the  history  of  the  colony,  but  Winthrop  did  not 
take  an  active  part  in  them,  as  in  1637  he  returned 
to  Ipswich  and  the  following  year  obtained  permis- 
sion to  set  up  salt  works  at  Ryall-side,  then  part  of 
Salem.  Prior  to  this  date  his  son,  Fitz  John  Win- 
throp, who  was  Governor  of  Connecticut  from  1698 
to  1707,  was  born  March  14,  1637-8,  in  Boston. 
John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  moved  to  Ryall-side  in  1639 
and  resided  there  until  August,  1641,  when  he  again 
sailed  for  England.  He  remained  abroad  for  over 
two  years,  the  most  of  his  time  being  devoted  to 
organizing  a  company  to  erect  iron  works  in  New 
England. 

Returning  to  New  England  in  1643,  John  Win- 
throp, Jr.,  remained  in  Massachusetts  until  the 
spring  of  1645,  when  he  started  for  the  Pequot 
country,  taking  with  him  the  first  horse1  ever  seen 

'John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  was  one  of  the  first,  if  not  the 
first  man  to  encourage  horse  breeding  in  New  Eng- 
land. On  Fisher's  Island  he  maintained  a  stud  farm 
which  was  continued  by  his  son  and  grandson.  In 
1677,  the  year  after  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  died,  John 
Hull,  the  master  of  the  Boston  Mint,  at  which  the  pine 
tree  shillings  were  coined,  associated  himself  with  Mr. 
Brenton  and  Benedict  Arnold,  and  enclosed  Point 


134  Wadsworth 

in  Connecticut.  In  November  of  that  year  the  town 
of  Pequot,  a  name  subsequently  changed  to  New 
London,  was  founded,  and  in  1646  John  Winthrop, 
Jr.,  removed  his  family  to  Fisher's  Island,  which 
was  granted  him  by  the  General  Court  of  Massa- 
chusetts. His  residence  in  New  London  was  built 
the  following  year.  In  1655  he  moved  to  New 
Haven  and  from  there  to  Hartford  in  1657,  when 
he  was  elected  Governor  of  Connecticut.  From 
1646  until  his  death,  in  1676,  John  Winthrop,  Jr., 

Judith  in  Rhode  Island  by  running  a  stone  wall  across 
the  north  end  in  order  to  keep  the  mongrel  breeds 
from  among  the  "very  good  breed  of  large  and  fine 
horses"  which  they  pastured  there,  and  some  of  which 
no  doubt  came  from  the  Winthrop  stud  on  Fisher's 
Island.  (See  Archaelogia  Americana,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  128.) 
It  is  supposed  that  the  Narragansett  pacer  which 
fables  have  made  rise,  Venus  like  from  the  sea,  trace  to 
this  band  on  Point  Judith  and  of  which  the  Rev.  Dr. 
McSparren  said  that  he  had  seen  "some  of  them  pace 
a  mile  in  a  little  more  than  two  minutes."  How  much 
more  would  be  very  interesting  to  those  who  study 
racing.  The  first  horse  brought  to  New  England  ar- 
rived in  Boston,  July  i,  1630,  in  the  Mayflower  or 
Whale.  (See  Winthrop's  History  of  New  England, 
Vol.  I,  p.  34.)  Three  heifers  and  a  bull  were  brought 
to  Plymouth  in  the  Charity  in  1624.  (See  Pilgrims  and 
Puritans,  p.  179).  They  were  the  first  cattle  in  New 
England.  In  the  south,  Ferdinand  De  Soto  landed  in 
Florida  in  May,  1539,  with  two  or  three  hundred 
horses  and  began  his  unsuccessful  search  for  gold  or 
silver,  although  he  discovered  the  Mississippi  River  in 
which  he  also  found  a  grave.  Of  the  horses,  a  few 
wounded  ones  were  turned  loose  in  the  forest  when 
Mavilla  or  Mobile  was  burned  October  18,  1540.  In 
March  of  the  following  year  another  bunch  of  horses 


The  Royal  Oak  135 

was  identified  with  Connecticut,  and  while  he  fre- 
quently asked  to  be  relieved  from  the  cares  of  office 
in  order  to  devote  his  declining  years  to  his  own 
affairs,  the  inhabitants  of  the  colony  had  so  much 
confidence  in  his  judgment  that  they  would  not 
consider  it.  The  highest  honor  in  their  gift  was 
none  too  great  for  a  man  who  had  procured  the 
charter  upon  which  they  based  the  titles  to  their 
homes. 

In   1649,  Winthrop  gave  notice  that  he   would 
decline  re-election  in  the  Court  of  Assistants  in  the 

escaped  into  the  woods  when  the  Chickasas  burned 
Chicaca  after  they  had  refused  to  supply  De  Soto  with 
two  hundred  men  to  carry  the  baggage  of  his  army. 
This  village  was  in  the  upper  part  of  Mississippi, 
probably  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Yazoo.  (See  Ban- 
croft's History  of  the  United  States,  Vol.  I,  Chapter 
II.)  A  few  days  after  this  mishap,  De  Soto  discovered 
the  Mississippi  River,  which  he  crossed,  barges  being 
built  for  the  horses.  De  Soto  died  May  21,  1542,  and 
his  followers,  after  making  an  unsuccessful  effort  to 
find  gold,  built  a  few  boats  to  carry  them  down  the 
river.  What  horses  they  did  not  kill  for  food  were 
turned  loose  in  the  forest.  The  wild  horses  which 
were  subsequently  found  on  the  prairies  traced  to  this 
stock.  Bancroft  also  says  that  it  was  not  long  after 
1660  before  the  horses  multiplied  in  Virginia,  and  to 
improve  that  noble  animal  was  early  an  object  of  pride 
soon  to  be  favored  by  legislature.  Speed  was  es- 
pecially valued  and  "the  planters'  pace"  became  pro- 
verbial. (See  Bancroft's  History  of  the  United  States, 
Vol.  I,  p.  234.)  In  New  England  in  1637,  a  mare  from 
England  or  Flanders  was  worth  30  pounds.  (See 
Trumbull's  History  of  Connecticut,  Vol.  I,  p.  78.)  In 
1687  the  court  allowed  Steven  Bracy  4  pounds  for  a 
horse  that  was  pressed  into  the  country  service  and 
lost.  (See  Connecticut  Colonial  Records.) 


136  Wadsworth 

Massachusetts  colony,  and  after  a  residence  of  one 
year  in  Connecticut,  he  was  in  May,  1651,  chosen 
as  an  Assistant.  About  this  time  his  step-father- 
in-law,  Hugh  Peters,  urged  him  to  return  to  Eng- 
land and  cast  his  fortunes  with  the  followers  of 
Oliver  Cromwell.  Winthrop  decided  to  remain  in 
New  England  and  was  in  1657  chosen  Governor. 
He  was  again  elected  to  that  office  in  1659,  after 
which  the  law  forbidding  immediate  re-election  of 
the  Governor  was  changed,  and  John  Winthrop  was 
chosen  annually  from  that  date  until  1676.  In  1661 
he  was  sent  to  England,  without  relinquishing  the 
Governorship,  to  procure  a  charter  for  the  Colony 
from  Charles  II.,  the  General  Assembly  on  the 
fourth  of  March  of  that  year  voting  500  pounds  for 
his  expenses  and  as  the  Treasurer  did  not  have  the 
money,  Winthrop  raised  it  by  mortgaging  Fisher's 
Island. 

When  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  visited  the  court  of 
Charles  II.  no  one  in  England  was  aware  of  the 
relationship  existing  between  him  and  Cromwell's 
chaplain,  Hugh  Peters,  who  had  been  executed  as 
a  Regicide.  I  have  also  heard  it  said  that  one  of 
Peters'  legs  was  nailed  over  the  gate  by  which  his 
step-son-in-law  entered  London,  while  Cromwell's 
head,1  pierced  with  a  pikestaff,  looked  down  on  him 

'The  embalmed  head  of  Oliver  Cromwell  is  owned 
by  Horace  Wilkinson,  who  lives  at  Seal,  near  Seven- 


HUGH    PETERS 


The  Royal  Oak  139 

from  Westminster  Hall,  but  for  the  truthfulness  of 
this  I  cannot  vouch. 

At  this  period  many  Puritans  had  influence  at 
court.  The  King  had  not  as  yet  forgotten  that  he 
came  to  his  own  again  through  their  favoring  a 
Restoration,  to  what  prevailed  after  the  death  of 
Oliver  Cromwell,  and  made  it  possible  by  co-oper- 
ating with  Monk,  under  whom  John  Winthrop's 
son  Fitz  John  served  as  a  captain  on  the  march  to 
London.  Monk  was  at  this  date  Duke  of  Albe- 
marle,  and  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  after  serving  as 
privy  counsellor  to  Charles  I.,  survived  the  Com- 
monwealth, and  was  now,  notwithstanding  his 
Presbyterian  principles  and  well-known  bearing  to- 
wards the  Puritans,  Lord  of  the  Privy  Seal.  Lord 
Brooke,  one  of  his  associates  in  the  Warwick  Pat- 
ent, and  whose  name  is  coupled  with  his  in  Say- 
brook,  was  dead,  having  been  shot  while  sitting 
in  his  chamber  by  a  besieged  soldier  in  Litchfield 
Close. 

Favored  by  "Old  Subtility,"1  the  Earl  of  Man- 
oaks,  in  Kent.  It,  together  with  a  portion  of  the 
pikestaff  with  which  it  was  pierced,  fell  from  the  pin- 
nacle of  Westminster  Hall  during  the  reign  of  James 
II,  after  being  exposed  to  the  elements  for  over  thirty 
years. 

1  It  was  an  age  of  nicknames.  The  King  was  known 
as  "Old  Rowley,"  an  allusion  to  an  ill-favored  but 
famous  horse  in  the  Royal  Mews.  King  Charles  called 
Hobbes  "the  bear,"  named  a  favored  yacht  "Fubbs" 


140  Wadsworth 

Chester  and  their  following,  John  Winthrop,  Jr., 
soon  made  his  way  at  court,  his  recitals  of  the  won- 
ders of  this,  then  comparatively  unknown  world, 
in  which  the  English  by  their  valor  and  skill  at 
arms,  had  conquered  the  Pequots  and  other  tribes 
of  Indians,  being  very  gratifying  to  the  King,  with 
whom  Winthrop  had  several  audiences,  and  those 
who  had  followed  His  Majesty  from  the  continent. 
During  one  of  these  interviews  Winthrop  presented 
His  Majesty  with  a  ring  which  was  given  his  grand- 
father by  Charles  I.  when  he  was  Prince  of  Wales. 
This  pleased  the  King  mightily  and  in  return  he 
presented  Governor  Winthrop  with  a  miniature  of 
himself  painted  on  ivory. 

in  honor  of  the  Duchess  of  Portsmouth,  who  became 
very  plump  in  her  person,  while  he  called  the  Queen 
"a  bat"  in  allusion  to  her  short,  broad,  figure,  her 
swarthy  complexion  and  the  projection  of  her  upper  lip 
from  a  protuberant  tooth.  The  name  selected  for 
Lord  Say  and  Seal  was  very  appropriate  when  it  is 
remembered  that  it  was  applied  to  a  man  who  passed 
through  the  Revolution,  lived  under  the  Common- 
wealth and  aided  in  the  Restoration  without  being  put 
to  any  annoyance,  while  his  sons  also  lived  on  in  the 
enjoyment  of  their  estates  under  Charles  II.,  although 
one  of  them,  Nathaniel  Fiennes,  commanded  Bristol 
when  taken  by  that  madman,  Prince  Rupert,  was  con- 
demned to  be  shot,  but  escaped  the  penalty,  later  be- 
came one  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  great  seal  under 
the  Parliament  and  subsequently  a  member  of  Crom- 
well's privy  council;  while  John,  his  third  son,  was 
one  of  Oliver  Cromwell's  Lords.  After  the  Restora- 
tion Nathaniel  retired  to  his  estates  in  Wiltshire, 
where  he  died  Dec.  16,  1669. 


The  Royal  Oak  141 

Notwithstanding  the  favors  shown  him  by  His 
Majesty  and  those  who  were  numbered  among-  his 
admirers,  John  Winthrop,  had  many  obstacles 
to  overcome,  but  his  tact  proved  equal  to  every 
emergency.  On  one  occasion  an  enemy  of  colonial 
interests,  who  felt  that  he  had  been  slighted  by  an 
unknown  from  America,  handed  the  King  a  pine 
tree  shilling1  which  had  been  struck  in  Massachu- 
setts as  an  evidence  that  the  colonists  were  violating 
the  laws  of  England  by  coining  the  King's  money, 
and  under  such  conditions  were  not  entitled  to  pat- 
ent privileges.  The  King  retained  the  coin  until 
Winthrop  again  appeared  at  court  to  urge  the  Con- 
necticut petition,  and  after  his  arguments  were  pre- 
sented Charles  handed  him  the  piece  of  money  and 
asked  him  what  was  meant  by  the  tree  on  the  face 
of  it.  "That,"  said  Winthrop,  who  was  familiar 
with  the  personal  history  of  the  King  and  who  also 
saw  that  the  name  of  the  tree  could  not  be  deter- 
mined by  the  stamp  on  the  coin,  "is  the  Royal  Oak, 
whose  leaves  and  branches  once  sheltered  your  gra- 
cious Majesty  from  your  foes." 

1  The  pine  tree  shillings  were  coined  by  John  Hull 
who  was  made  master  of  the  Mint  in  Boston  in  1652. 
Hull  was  born  at  Market  Hanborough,  Leicestershire, 
England,  December  18,  1624,  and  accompanied  his 
father  to  New  England  in  1635.  He  was  a  zealous  Puri- 
tan and  married  Judith,  daughter  of  Edmund  Quincy, 
the  ceremony  being  performed  by  Governor  Winthrop 
"on  the  nth  day  of  the  third  month,"  1647. 


142  Wadsworfh 

"Oddsfish,"  said  His  Majesty,  "you  are  truly  loyal 
in  New  England,  when  even  the  dangers  I  have 
passed  are  commemorated  on  your  coins,"  and  as 
Winthrop  related  on  his  return,  the  King,  utterly 
regardless  of  the  other  business  which  required  his 
attention,  called  his  spaniels1  and  as  he  fondled 
their  long  silky  ears,  related  to  those  present  how 
he  fled  from  Worcester  and  wandered  for  over  six 
weeks  in  the  southwestern  counties  of  England 
before  his  friends  could  find  a  ship  to  carry  him 
across  the  channel  to  France.  Over  fifty  years 
have  elapsed  since  I  first  heard  what  the  King  said 
to  Winthrop  and  the  others  who  were  present  and 
since  then  many  local  facts  have  been  added  to  the 
narration  which  I  will  endeavor  to  place  on  record 
in  these  notes. 

The  battle  of  Worcester  was  the  last  stand  that 
the  Royalists  made  in  England  against  Cromwell, 
and  as  his  victorious  troops  poured  into  the  city, 
Charles  Stuart,  the  nominal  King  of  Great  Britain, 
surrounded  by  a  few  nobles,  rode  out  of  St.  Mar- 
tin's gate  towards  Scotland,  a  fugitive  who  in  a 
few  days  had  a  price  of  1,000  pounds  placed  on  his 

'Sept.  4,  1667.  Staid  (at  the  Whitehall  chamber) 
and  heard  Alderman  Baker's  case  of  his  being  abused 
by  the  council  of  Ireland,  touching  his  lands  there;  all 
I  observed  there  was  the  silliness  of  the  King,  playing 
with  his  dogs  all  the  while,  and  not  minding  the  busi- 
ness, and  what  he  said  was  mighty  weak. — Pepy's 
Diary. 


WILLIAM   PENDRELL 


The  Royal  Oak  145 

head.  In  the  first  flush  of  triumph  no  one  in  the 
Parliamentary  forces  appeared  to  be  very  anxious 
to  apprehend  the  King  and  to  this  no  doubt  he  owed 
his  escape  without  leaving  a  clue. 

When  the  King  left  the  city,  he  and  Lord  Wil- 
mot,  afterwards  the  Duke  of  Rochester,  intended 
to  make  a  dash  for  London  in  the  hope  of  getting 
a  vessel  for  France  before  the  news  of  his  defeat 
could  get  thither,  but  he  found  that  he  could  not 
break  away  from  his  defeated  soldiers  who  were, 
like  himself,  fleeing  along  Leicestershire  road  until 
it  was  too  late.  He  finally,  with  about  sixty  gentle- 
men and  officers,  the  Duke  of  Buckingham,  Lord 
Derby  and  Wilmot  being  of  the  number,  slipped 
out  of  the  high  road  and  galloped  towards  Wolver- 
hampton,  passing  through  Stonebridge,  where  a 
troop  of  the  enemy  was  quartered  for  the  night, 
without  being  suspected.  After  a  ride  of  about 
twenty  miles,  as  the  day  was  breaking  they  came 
to  White  Ladys,1  a  house  belonging  to  the  Giffard 
family,  one  of  whose  retainers,  William  Pendrell, 
hid  Lord  Derby  at  Boscobel  House  while  he  was 
recovering  from  a  wound  received  in  a  skirmish 
with  Colonel  Lilburn  at  Wigan.  Just  as  they  ar- 
rived at  White  Ladys,  a  country  fellow  brought  the 

1  White  Ladys  was  given  the  name  from  it  having 
been  formerly  a  monastery  of  Cistertian  nuns  whose 
habits  were  of  that  color. 


146  Wadsworfh 

news  that  there  were  three  thousand  Royalist  horse 
on  a  heath  near  Tong  Castle,  all  in  disorder,  under 
David  Leslie.  A  few  of  those  who  were  with  the 
King  advised  him  to  join  Leslie  and  endeavor  to 
reach  Scotland,  but  Charles  thought  that  this  was 
not  possible,  as  he  knew  that  the  country  would  rise 
against  the  Scotch  and  that  men  who  had  deserted 
him  when  in  good  order  could  not  be  depended  upon 
after  they  had  been  beaten. 

After  having  some  refreshments  of  bread  and 
cheese,  the  King  decided  to  go  on  foot  to  London 
disguised  in  a  country  fellow's  habit,  a  pair  of  or- 
dinary gray  cloth  breeches,  a  leather  doublet  and  a 
green  jerkin.  Upon  the  announcement  of  his  plan, 
all  of  the  persons  of  quality  and  officers,  except  Lord 
Wilmot,  rode  off  to  join  Leslie.  After  they  reached 
him  and  marched  about  six  miles  they  were 
routed  by  a  single  troop  of  horse,  Lord 
Derby  and  a  number  of  others  being  taken  prison- 
ers. Before  leaving  to  join  the  Leslie  horse,  Charles 
Giffard  recommended  to  the  King  his  retainers, 
Richard  and  William  Pendrell,1  as  honest  men  who 

1  The  Pendrell  family  consisted  of  six  sons  and  one 
daughter,  the  mother,  good  wife  Pendrell,  called  Dame 
Joan  by  Charles  II.,  being  at  Hobbal  Grange  when  the 
King  was  in  that  vicinity.  She  died  in  1669  and  was 
buried  at  White  Ladys.  Of  her  sons,  Thomas  fell  at 
Edgehill  in  the  army  of  Charles  I.,  William  lived  with 
his  wife  at  Boscobel  House;  Richard,  "Trusty  Dick," 
resided  at  Hobbal  Grange;  John  and  George,  both  of 


The  Royal  Oak  147 

could  be  depended  upon.  With  their  assistance 
he  cut  off  his  hair  and  flung  his  clothes  in  a  privy 
house  so  that  nobody  might  see  that  anyone  had 
been  stripping  themselves  there,  and,  disguised 
in  a  leathern  doublet  and  workman's  suit,  left 
White  Ladys  to  find  refuge  in  Spring  Coppice 
wood.  Seated  on  a  blanket  which  Richard  Pend- 
rell  brought  from  the  house  of  his  brother-in-law, 
Francis  Yates,  the  King  passed  the  first  day  of 
his  hiding,  good  wife  Yates,  a  sister  of  the  Pend- 
rells,  bringing  him  a  mess  of  butter,  milk  and 
eggs,  and  cheering  him  with  the  assurance  that 
she  would  rather  die  than  discover  him. 

As  the  King  and  Richard  Pendrell  passed  the 
day  in  the  wood,  they  talked  about  getting  to 

which  were  woodmen,  occupied  adjoining  cottages,  al- 
thoueh  Father  Hudleston  says  that  John  lived  at 
White  Ladys  and  Humphrey  at  the  mill  at  White 
Ladys.  The  daughter  Elizabeth  was  the  wife  of  Fran- 
cis Yates,  who  gave  the  King  the  coarse  shirt  which 
he  wore  until  Hudleston  gave  him  a  linen  one  the  fol- 
lowing week  at  Moseley  Hall.  The  King  is  supposed 
to  have  changed  his  clothes  in  the  Yates  house,  and 
he  told  Pepys  at  Newmarket  in  1680  "the  man  in  whose 
house  I  changed  my  clothes  came  to  one  of  the  Pend- 
rells  about  two  days  after,  and  asking  him  where  I 
was,  told  him  that  they  might  get  1,000  pounds  if 
they  would  tell,  because  there  was  that  sum  upon  my 
head.  But  Pendrell  was  so  honest,  that,  though  he  at 
the  time  knew  where  I  was,  he  bade  him  have  a  care 
what  he  did;  for,  that  I  being  gone  out  of  reach,  if 
they  should  now  discover  that  I  had  been  there,  they 
would  get  nothing  but  hanging  for  their  pains." 


148  Wadsworth 

London,  and,  as  the  family  did  not  know  any  men 
of  quality  on  the  way,  Charles  decided  that  he 
would  create  less  suspicion  by  crossing  the  Sev- 
ern and  seeking  shelter  among  the  Royalists  in 
Wales  until  a  ship  could  be  found  to  carry  him 
from  Swansea  or  some  of  the  other  sea  towns,  to 
France.  At  nightfall  they  repaired  to  Hobbal 
Grange,  where  the  King  completed  his  rustic  dis- 
guise and  from  which  he  and  "Trusty  Dick" 
Pendrell  started  on  foot  towards  the  river,  in- 
tending to  cross  at  a  ferry  between  Bridgewater 
and  Shrewsbury.  As  they  were  trudging  along 
in  the  dark  they  came  to  a  mill  in  which  they 
could  hear  people  talking.  When  they  passed, 
the  miller,  who  was  sitting  at  the  door, 
called  out,  "Who  goes  there?"  upon  which  Rich- 
ard Pendrell  answered,  "Neighbours  going 
home."  Whereupon  the  miller  cried  out,  "If  you 
are  neighbours,  stand  or  I  will  knock  you  down." 
Fearful  of  exposure  on  account  of  the  King  not 
being  able  to  speak  in  the  accent  of  the  country, 
and  believing  that  the  company  was  coming  out 
of  the  mill,  Pendrell  and  Charles  turned  and  fled 
up  a  lane,  with  the  miller  crying  "Rogues, 
rogues,"  in  pursuit. 

They  soon  evaded  him  in  the  darkness,  and, 
after  hiding  for  about  half  an  hour  behind  a 
hedge,  marched  on  to  Madeley,  where  Pendrell 


The  Royal  Oak  149 

knew  an  old  Royalist  named  Woolfe,  who  had 
hiding  holes  for  priests.  The  King  refused  to  go 
into  his  house  until  he  knew  whether  Woolfe 
would  harbor  so  dangerous  a  guest,  and  remained 
in  the  field  under  a  hedge  until  Pendrell  could 
learn  if  he  would  receive  a  person  of  quality  and 
hide  him  the  next  day.  At  the  time  Woolfe's  son 
was  a  prisoner  at  Shrewsbury,  having  been  taken 
while  fighting  for  the  King,  while  his  house  had 
recently  been  searched  and  all  of  the  hiding  holes 
discovered. 

When  Woolfe  learned  that  the  man  seeking 
shelter  was  one  who  escaped  from  Worcester,  he 
said  that  he  would  not  venture  his  neck  for  any 
man  unless  it  were  the  King  himself.  As  Pend- 
rell had  orders  not  to  tell  who  the  person  was,  he 
did  not  know  which  way  to  turn,  but  upon  learn- 
ing that  there  were  two  companies  of  militia  in 
the  place  Ireeping  guard  at  the  ferry,  and  seeing 
that  the  day  was  coming,  he  decided  to  disobey 
Charles'  commands  and  told  Woolfe  that  it  was 
the  King.  Upon  this  Woolfe  said  that  he  would 
venture  all  he  had  in  the  world  to  secure  him, 
and  Pendrell  brought  the  King  into  the  house  by 
a  back  way. 

After  giving  the  pair  some  cold  meat,  Woolfe 
concealed  them  under  the  corn  and  hay  in  his 
barn,  where  they  remained  all  the  next  day. 


150  Wadsworth 

Towards  evening  Woolfe's  son  who  had  been 
released,  came  home.  At  dusk  they  brought 
food  to  the  barn,  where  they  discussed  the 
chances  of  getting  over  the  Severn  into  Wales. 
They  were  of  the  opinion  that  it  could  not  be 
done  on  account  of  the  strict  guards  that  were 
kept  all  along  the  river  where  a  passage  could 
be  found,  and,  as  the  King  had  taken  sufficient 
chances  in  the  past  forty-eight  hours,  he  decided 
to  return  to  Pendrell's  house  and  remain  there 
until  he  could  hear  from  Lord  Wilmot.  After 
Mrs.  Woolfe  had  completed  the  King's  disguise 
by  staining  his  face  and  hands  a  reeky  color  with 
walnut  leaves,  Richard  Pendrell  and  Charles 
started  for  Boscobel  House,  stopping  on  the  way 
at  John  Pendrell's,  where  they  learned  that  Wil- 
mot had  found  shelter  at  Moseley  Hall,  the  home 
of  Mr.  Whitgreave,  and  that  Major  Carles,  an 
officer  who  had  fought  under  him  at  Worcester 
and  who  had  maintained  his  ground  until  the  last 
man  was  killed,  was  in  hiding  at  Boscobel. 

As  soon  as  the  King  arrived  at  his  destination 
he  sent  for  Carles  and  consulted  with  him  as  to 
what  they  should  do  the  next  day.  Carles  advised 
him  that  it  would  be  dangerous  to  remain  in  the 
house  or  go  into  the  great  wood,  as  the  enemy 
would  certainly  search  for  people  who  had  made 
their  escape.  He  also  said  that  he  knew  of  but 


THE   ROYAL  OAK   OF   BOSCOBEL 


The  Royal  Oak  153 

one  way  to  pass  the  day,  and  that  was  to  climb 
into  an  oak  tree  standing  in  an  open  space  about 
a  furlong  from  the  house.1  As  the  King  approved 
of  the  plan,  the  two  fugitives,  assisted  by  the 
Pendrells,  went  up  into  the  great  oak,  taking 
some  bread,  cheese  and  small  beer  as  victuals  for 
the  day.  This  tree  had  been  lopped  some  three 
or  four  years  before,  and,  having  grown  out  again 
very  thick  and  bushy,  could  not  be  seen  through ; 
but  during  the  day  both  Carles  and  the  King  saw 
the  red  coats  of  Cromwell's  soldiers  as  they 
searched  in  the  Boscobel  wood  for  persons  who 
had  escaped  from  Worcester.  None  of  them 
came  near  the  hiding  place,  which  has  since  that 
day  been  known  as  the  Royal  Oak.2  At  dusk 

1  After  the  Restoration,  when  the  details  of  the 
King's  escape  from  Worcester  were  published,  hun- 
dreds flocked  to  Boscobel  to  see  the  tree,  which  was 
soon  called  the  Royal  Oak.  The  more  zealous  ad- 
mirers of  the  King  were  not  satisfied  with  looking  at 
the  tree,  but  insisted  on  carrying  away  young  branches 
as  souvenirs.  At  an  early  date  Basil  Fitzherbert,  who 
subsequently  owned  the  property  on  which  the  tree 
stood,  built  a  stone  wall  around  the  tree  to  protect  it 
from  the  public.  He  also  had  it  cropped  in  the  hope 
that  it  would  grow  out  again,  but  even  this  heroic 
measure  failed  to  save  it.  Upon  its  fall  one  of  its 
acorns  was  planted  on  the  original  spot.  The  wall 
built  by  Sir  Basil  was  removed  in  1814,  when  a  high 
iron  railing  took  its  place.  A  brass  plate,  with  Sir 
Basil's  inscription  formerly  fixed  on  the  tree,  is  still 
preserved  in  Boscobel  House. 

*  On  April  21,  1840,  at  a  meeting  of  the  Connecti- 
cut Historical  Society  Col.  Wm.  L.  Stone  of  New 


154  Wadsworth 

Carles  and  the  King  returned  to  Boscobel  House, 
where  they  remained  until  the  following  evening, 
when  John  Pendrell  returned  from  a  visit  to  Lord 
Wilmot  and  told  the  King  that  arrangements  had 
been  made  to  receive  him  at  Moseley  Hall. 

At  nightfall,  surrounded  by  a  bodyguard  com- 
posed of  the  five  Pendrells  and  brother-in-law 
Yates,  the  King,  mounted  on  Humphrey's  mill 
horse,  set  out.  As  they  trudged  along  in  the 

York,  made  the  following  reference  of  the  Charter  and 
Royal  Oaks:  "I  need  not  remind  this  audience  of  the 
fact  that  after  the  decisive  defeat  of  Charles  the  Sec- 
ond, by  Cromwell  at  Worcester,  he  was  indebted  to 
the  thick  branches  of  an  oak  in  Boscobel,  for  conceal- 
ment from  his  victorious  pursuers,  upon  whom  he 
looked  down  in  perfect  security.  Now  had  it  not  been 
for  the  Oak  of  Boscobel,  Charles  would  have  been 
taken  and  executed  by  the  fierce  and  victorious  Presby- 
terian. Of  course,  in  that  event,  he  would  not  have 
granted  the  Charter  of  1662,  securing  to  the  Colony  the 
Constitution  of  1639;  and  again  when  in  1687,  Sir  Ed- 
mund Andros  came  hither  to  reclaim  the  Charter,  had 
it  not  been  for  the  dexterity  of  Wadsworth  and  his  con- 
federates, and  the  noble  old  Oak,  whose  boughs,  'mossed 
with  age,  and  bald  with  dry  antiquity,'  yet  brave  the 
tempest  and  'the  scolding  winds,'  what  would  have  be- 
come of  that  priceless  Charter?  Sir,  I  venerate  the 
'gnarled  and  unwedgeable  oak;'  I  prize  it  for  its  poetical 
associations  and  for  its  history.  I  prize  it  because  it 
sheltered  the  patriarchs;  I  regard  it  because  the  Anglo 
Saxons  loved  and  worshipped  under  it.  I  love  it  because 
it  saved  Charles  the  Second  to  give  the  Charter  of 
1662.  And  I  value  it  still  more  because  it  saved  the 
Charter  itself.  Let  me  then  give  as  a  toast — The  Oak 
of  Boscobel  and  the  Oak  of  Hartford — the  latter  saved 
the  Charter  of  Connecticut,  which  but  for  the  former, 
King  Charles  would  not  have  lived  to  grant." 


The  Royal  Oak  155 

darkness  and  rain,  his  Majesty,  who  had  not  as 
yet  recovered  from  his  fatigue,  complained  that 
his  mount  "was  the  dullest  jade  he  ever  rode  on," 
to  which  the  miller  replied,  "Can  you  blame  the 
horse,  my  liege,  to  go  heavily  when  he  has  the 
weight  of  three  kingdoms  on  his  back?"  an  an- 
swer the  King  enjoyed  hugely. 

When  within  two  miles  of  Moseley  Hall  the 
King  dismounted,  and  after  parting  with  three  of 
the  brothers,  proceeded  on  foot  to  a  small  grove 
of  trees  known  as  Pit  Leason,  where  he  was  met 
by  Father  Hudleston1  and  Mr.  Whitgreave  and 
conveyed  to  the  home  of  the  latter,  where  he 
found  Lord  Wilmot.  The  King  remained  at 
Moseley  Hall  for  two  days,  during  which  Lord 
Wilmot  and  Colonel  Lane  perfected  arrange- 
ments to  have  him  proceed  to  a  point  near  Bris- 
tol, as  William  Jackson,  a  serving  man  with 
Jane  Lane,  under  a  pass  which  she  had  from 
Captain  Stone,  Governor  of  Stratford.  Clothed 
in  an  ordinary  gray  suit,  the  newly  made  servant, 
after  being  equipped  and  tutored  in  the  stable  by 
the  Colonel,  rode  to  the  front  door  of  Bentley 
Hall  on  a  double  horse  provided  for  Mistress 

1  Both  Hudleston  and  Whitgreave  had  served  in  the 
army  of  Charles  I.  The  former  survived  the  Restora- 
tion and  also  Charles  II.  and  was  the  priest  who  was 
smuggled  into  the  Royal  chamber  to  administer  ex- 
treme unction  to  that  monarch  in  his  last  moments. 


156  Wadsworih 

Lane  and  set  off  in  company  with  a  Royalist  offi- 
cer named  Lascelles,  Mrs.  Petre,  a  sister  of  Col- 
onel Lane,  and  her  husband. 

After  a  ride  of  about  two  hours  the  King's 
mare  cast  a  shoe  and  he  was  forced  to  ride  to  a 
village  near  by  to  have  it  reset.  As  he  was  hold- 
ing the  mare's  foot  he  asked  the  smith  what  news 
and  was  told  that  there  was  none  since  the  Scotch 
rogues  were  beaten  at  Worcester.  The  King 
then  asked  if  none  of  the  English  had  been  taken 
with  the  Scots  and  was  told  that  he  did  not  hear 
that  the  rogue  Charles  Stuart  was  taken,  but  that 
some  of  the  others  were.  At  this  point  His  Maj- 
esty ventured  the  remark  that  if  the  rogue  Charles 
Stuart  were  taken  he  deserved  hanging  for  bring- 
ing in  the  Scots.  Upon  which  the  smith  told 
him  he  talked  like  an  honest  man,  and  they  parted. 

As  the  King  and  his  small  party  arrived  near 
Walton,  within  four  miles  of  Stratford,  an  old 
woman  who  was  gleaning  in  the  fields  cried  out, 
"Master,  don't  you  see  a  troop  of  horses  before 
you  ?"  and  upon  looking  in  the  direction  indicated 
they  espied  a  troop  whose  riders  had  alighted 
and  the  horses  eating  grass  by  the  wayside.  At 
the  suggestion  of  one  of  the  gentlemen  who  ac- 
companied Mrs.  Lane,  they  wheeled  about  and 
took  a  more  indirect  way  into  Stratford,  where 
they  met  the  same  or  another  troop,  which  opened 


The  Royal  Oak  157 

right  and  left,  making  way  for  the  travelers  to 
march  through  them.  Jane  Lane  and  her  com- 
pany lodged  that  night  at  the  house  of  Mr. 
Toombs,  in  Long  Marston,  four  miles  west  of 
Stratford.  Upon  their  arrival,  Will  Jackson  was 
sent  to  the  kitchen,  where  the  cook  was  busy 
preparing  supper  for  the  master  and  his  guests. 
As  the  King  in  disguise  sat  by  the  fire,  the  cook 
bade  him  wind  up  the  jack.  When  he  failed  to  do 
it  properly  she  flew  into  a  passion  and  asked, 
"What  countryman  are  you  that  you  know  not 
how  to  wind  up  a  jack?"  His  Majesty  answered 
very  satisfactorily  as  he  said,  "I  am  a  poor  ten- 
ant's son  of  Colonel  Lane's  of  Staffordshire;  we 
seldom  have  roast  meat,  but  when  we  have  it,  we 
do  not  make  use  of  a  jack,"  at  which  the  cook 
was  very  much  amused. 

The  following  day  Jane  Lane's  party,  which 
was  now  reduced  to  Mr.  Lascells  and  the  dis- 
guised serving  man,  Mr.  Petre  and  his  wife  hav- 
ing parted  from  them  at  Stratford,  passed  through 
Camden  and  lodged  at  an  inn  in  Cirencester. 
Another  day's  journey  brought  them  to  the  resi- 
dence of  George  Norton  at  Abbotsleigh,  three 
miles  beyond  the  town  of  Bristol.  The  King  re- 
mained here  from  Saturday  until  the  following- 
Tuesday.  On  the  morning  after  his  arrival  he 
was  recognized  by  the  butler  of  the  house,  an 


158  Wadsworfh 

honest  fellow  named  Pope,  and  who  had  served 
Tom  Jermyn,  a  groom  of  the  King's  bedchamber 
when  Charles  was  a  boy  at  Richmond.  Pope 
had  also  been  a  trooper  in  his  father's  army. 
Having  learned  that  he  was  always  loyal,  the 
King,  as  soon  as  he  was  advised  of  the  discovery, 
sent  for  Pope  and  told  him  that  as  an  old  ac- 
quaintance he  would  trust  him  with  his  life.  He 
also  told  him  that  it  was  his  design  to  get  a  ship 
at  Bristol,  and  to  that  end  bade  Pope  go  that  day 
to  the  town  and  learn  if  there  were  any  vessels 
ready  to  sail  for  Spain  or  France.  Upon  his  re- 
turn Pope  reported  that  there  would  be  none 
sailing  for  a  month,  and,  as  the  King  could  not 
remain  at  Abbotsleigh  for  that  length  of  time, 
after  consulting  with  Lord  Wilmot,  who  traveled 
about  without  putting  on  any  disguise,  he  de- 
cided to  adopt  Pope's  suggestion  of  seeking  shel- 
ter with  Frank  Wyndham  at  Trent  in  Somerset- 
shire. 

Accordingly  the  next  morning  Jane  Lane, 
accompanied  by  Mr.  Lascells  and  her  disguised 
serving  man,  departed  for  Trent,  although  at  the 
time  the  Nortons  supposed  that  they  were  re- 
turning to  Bentley  Hall,  while  Lord  Wilmot 
rode  on  in  advance  to  apprise  the  Wyndhams  of 
the  quality  of  the  guest  who  would  seek  the  shel- 
ter of  their  roof.  Upon  receipt  of  advice  that  it 


JANE   LANE 


The  Royal  Oak  161 

was  the  King,  Colonel  Wyndham,  who  was  at 
the  time  a  prisoner  on  parole,  assured  Wilmot 
that  for  His  Majesty's  preservation  he  would 
value  neither  his  life,  family  nor  fortune  and 
would  never  injure  His  Majesty's  confidence  in 
him. 

The  next  morning,  after  acquainting  his 
mother,  Lady  Wyndham,  her  niece,  Juliana  Con- 
ingsby,  his  wife  and  the  servants  that  could  be 
trusted  with  what  Lord  Wilmot  told  him  over 
night,  he  and  his  lady  walked  forth  in  the  fields 
to  meet  Jane  Lane  and  her  escort,  which  had 
lain  the  preceding  night  at  Castle  Gary,  a  town 
six  miles  distant  from  Trent.  In  their  absence 
Lady  Wyndham  had  her  chamber  prepared  to 
receive  the  King,  while  all  of  the  servants  not 
privy  to  the  secret  were  given  employment  which 
removed  them  out  of  the  way  at  the  time  of  his 
arrival. 

As  soon  as  the  King  came  near  Colonel  Wynd- 
ham, he  called  to  him,  "Frank,  Frank,  how  dost 
thou  do?"  but  refrained  from  further  remarks 
until  he  and  Mistress  Lane  had  been  conveyed  into 
Lady  Wyndham's  chamber,  where  they  were 
soon  joined  by  Lord  Wilmot.  The  ladies  then 
withdrew  to  the  parlor  and  on  the  following 
day  Jane  Lane  and  Mr.  Lascells  departed.  As 
for  the  King,  he  remained  at  Trent  house  for 


162  Wadsworth 

nineteen  days,  except  during  the  period  covered 
by  an  unsuccessful  attempt  to  get  a  vessel  to 
transport  him  from  Lyme  to  France.  During 
this  period  he  had  ample  opportunity  to  learn  of 
the  loyalty  of  the  Wyndhams. 

When  the  time  hung  heavily,  Colonel  Wynd- 
ham,  on  more  than  one  occasion,  entertained  the 
King  by  relating  how,  in  1636,  before  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  Civil  War,  his  father,  Sir  Thomas 
Wyndham,  summoned  his  five  sons  to  his  cham- 
ber and  spoke  to  them  of  the  peace  which  the 
kingdom  had  enjoyed  under  the  Tudor  sover- 
eigns and  of  the  blessed  union  of  the  crowns  of 
England  and  Scotland,  which  put  an  end  to  the 
border  raids  and  feuds,  many  of  which  traced 
back  to  the  Normans.  After  dwelling  upon  the 
stern  but  loyal  barons  who  wrested  the  Magna 
Charta  from  King  John,  and  referring  to  the 
divisions  of  families  in  the  troubles  between  the 
houses  of  Lancaster  and  York,  both  of  which 
were  united  in  Henry  VIL,  he  said,  "My  sons! 
we  have  hitherto  seen  serene  and  quiet  times,  but 
now  prepare  yourselves  for  cloudy  and  trouble- 
some. I  command  you  to  honor  and  obey  our 
gracious  sovereign,  and  in  all  times  to  adhere  to 
the  crown ;  and  though  the  crown  shall  hang  on  a 
bush,  I  charge  you  to  forsake  it  not."  Sir  Thomas 
died  before  the  war  began,  but  his  family  re- 


The  Royal  Oak  163 

mained  loyal  to  the  end,  three  of  his  sons  and  a 
grandson  falling  in  battle  in  the  cause  of  Charles 
I.,  and  Frank  Wyndham  also  served  with  honor. 

On  one  of  the  days  while  the  King  was  con- 
cealed at  Trent,  he  heard  the  bells  ringing  in  a 
church  yard  hard  by  the  Wyndham  house,  and,  see- 
ing a  company  there  he  sent  a  maid  who  knew  him 
to  learn  what  was  on  foot.  Upon  her  return  she  told 
him  that  one  of  Cromwell's  troopers  was  telling  the 
people  that  he  had  killed  the  King  and  that  he  was 
then  wearing  his  buff  coat.  As  the  majority  of  the 
people  were  bitterly  opposed  to  the  Royalists,  they 
expressed  their  joy  by  ringing  the  church  bells  and 
making  a  bonfire. 

The  morning  after  the  King  arrived  at  Trent, 
both  he  and  Lord  Wilmot,  after  consulting  with 
Frank  Wyndham,  decided  that  the  latter  should 
approach  Sir  John  Strangways,  who  had  had  two 
sons  in  Charles  I.'s  army,  and  ask  him  to  assist 
in  procuring  a  vessel.  The  Strangways  were  un- 
able to  give  any  aid  in  the  adventure  other  than 
by  sending  the  King  a  hundred  pounds.  After 
advising  His  Majesty  of  the  failure  in  that  quar- 
ter, Frank  Wyndham  traveled  to  Lyme,  where 
he  approached  William  Ellesden;  a  merchant 
who  had,  with  the  assistance  of  his  brother,  con- 
veyed several  gentlemen  to  France.  As  soon  as 
Ellesden  learned  that  Colonel  Wyndham  came 


164  Wadsworth 

from  the  King,  he  expressed  himself  as  willing 
to  meet  any  hazard  in  the  enterprise  and  went 
with  him  to  one  of  his  tenants,  Samuel  Limbry, 
who  intended  to  make  a  speedy  voyage  to  San 
Malo.  Limbry  agreed  to  transport  Colonel 
Wyndham,  who  treated  with  him  under  the  name 
of  Captain  Norris,  and  three  or  four  friends  to 
France  for  60  pounds,  promising  to  take  them 
from  the  beach  near  Charmouth  in  his  long  boat 
on  the  night  of  September  22.  As  soon  as  their 
arrangements  were  completed,  Colonel  Wyndham 
returned  to  Trent  and  dispatched  his  servant, 
Henry  Peters,  to  Charmouth  to  engage  chambers 
at  the  inn  for  the  King  and  his  party  until  it  was 
time  to  go  on  board.  By  representing  his  master 
as  a  gallant  who  was  eloping  with  a  young  wom- 
an of  good  parents  in  Devon,  and  favoring  the 
hostess  with  a  present,  Peters  left  with  a  promise 
that  the  house  and  its  servants  should  be  at  his 
master's  command. 

When  the  day  selected  for  the  journey  to  Char- 
mouth  came,  the  King  rode  away  from  Trent  as 
a  serving  man  before  Lady  Wyndham's  niece, 
Juliana  Coningsby.  Colonel  Wyndham  acted  as 
guide,  while  Lord  Wilmot  and  Peters  remained 
at  a  convenient  distance.  William  Ellesden  met 
them  and  conducted  the  party  to  his  brother's 
house  among  the  hills,  where  they  remained  un- 


The  Royal  Oak  165 

til  nightfall.  The  company  then  started  for  the 
inn,  where  they  expected  to  lay  until  midnight, 
when  Limbry's  long  boat  was  to  meet  them  at 
the  appointed  place. 

As  the  set  hour  drew  nigh  Colonel  Wyndham 
and  Peters  repaired  to  the  beach,  where  they  re- 
mained until  the  break  of  day.  The  boat  did  not 
come,  and  as  they  had  not  received  a  message 
from  the  master  of  the  ship,  they  returned  to  the 
inn  and  advised  both  the  King  and  Lord  Wilmot 
to  fly,  as  they  feared  that  they  had  been  betrayed. 
As  soon  as  the  horses  could  be  led  out,  Colonel 
Wyndham  and  the  King,  the  latter  riding  before 
Mistress  Coningsby,  departed  for  Burport,  where 
Lord  Wilmot  promised  to  join  them  as  soon  as 
he  learned  why  the  ship  had  failed  them.  Send- 
ing for  Ellesden,  he  had  him  find  Limbry,  from 
whom  it  was  ascertained  that  in  order  to  prevent  a 
discovery  he  had  not  told  his  wife  of  his  intention 
of  going  to  sea  until  it  was  almost  time  for  him 
to  go  aboard.  When  he  called  for  his  chest,  she 
asked  him  why  he  was  going  to  sail  without 
goods,  and  he  told  her  that  Mr.  Ellesden  had  pro- 
vided a  better  freight.  His  wife,  having  been  at 
the  Lyme  fair  that  day,  heard  the  proclamation 
read  wherein  1,000  pounds  reward  was  promised 
for  the  discovery  of  the  King,  and  in  which  the 
penalties  for  concealing  His  Majesty  or  any  of 


166  Wadsworth 

those  who  fought  with  him  at  Worcester  were 
set  forth.  Being  convinced  that  her  husband 
intended  to  carry  a  few  of  these  fugitives  into 
France,  she  locked  the  door  upon  him  and  by 
the  help  of  her  two  daughters  kept  him  by  force, 
and  at  the  same  time  threatened  that  if  he  offered 
to  stir  out  of  doors  she  would  go  to  Lyme  and 
give  information  against  him  and  Mr.  Ellesden 
to  Captain  Macy,  who  was  lying  there  with  a 
company  of  foot.  Knowing  what  an  exposure 
meant,  Limbry  remained  peaceably  at  home. 

While  getting  this  information  Lord  Wilmot 
learned  that  his  horse  was  wanting  a  shoe,  and, 
knowing  that  it  was  all  he  had  to  depend  upon 
in  making  his  escape  from  Charmouth,  he  bade 
the  hostler  at  the  inn  lead  him  to  a  smith  and 
have  one  set.  The  horse  was  taken  to  the  forge 
of  one  Hammet,  who,  after  finishing  his  task, 
examined  the  remaining  shoes,  as  all  good  work- 
men will.  As  he  did  so  he  said  in  the  hearing 
of  the  hostler,  "This  horse  hath  three  shoes  that 
were  set  in  three  different  counties,  and  one  of 
them  in  Worcestershire."  This  confirmed  the 
hostler's  suspicions,  which  were  first  aroused  by 
the  horses  being  kept  in  readiness  all  the  night, 
and  several  members  of  the  company  going  to 
the  seaside,  but  before  he  could  find  anyone  who 
would  listen  to  him,  Lord  Wilmot  rode  off 


The  Royal  Oak  167 

towards  Burport,  where  he  joined  the  King  and 
Colonel  Wyndham. 

When  Charles  and  his  party  arrived  at  Bur- 
port  they  found  the  streets  full  of  Cromwell's 
red-coated  soldiers,  it  being  a  regiment  of  Colonel 
Haynes  going  to  embark  for  Jersey.  Wyndham 
was  very  much  startled,  but  the  King  told  him 
that  they  must  go  impudently  into  the  best  inn 
in  the  town,  and  take  a  chamber  there;  because 
they  should  otherwise  miss  Lord  Wilmot  in  case 
they  went  anywhere  else,  and  that  would  be  very 
inconvenient  both  to  him  and  them.  So  they 
rode  directly  into  the  inn  yard.  The  King  alight- 
ed and,  taking  the  horses,  went  blundering 
through  the  middle  of  the  soldiers  into  the  stable ; 
and  in  doing  so  created  not  a  little  anger  by  his 
rudeness. 

As  soon  as  he  went  into  the  stable  Charles 
took  the  bridles  off  the  horses,  called  the  hostler 
to  help  him,  and  to  give  the  horses  some  oats. 
As  the  hostler  was  feeding  the  horses  he  said, 
"Sure,  sir,  I  know  your  face,"  which  was  not  a 
very  pleasant  remark  under  the  circumstances, 
but  in  order  to  learn  what  he  did  know  the  King 
asked  him  where  he  had  lived  and  if  he  had  al- 
ways lived  in  Burport  or  not.  The  hostler  told 
him  that  he  was  born  in  Exeter  and  had  worked 
in  the  stables  at  an  inn  near  the  house  of  one 


168  Wadsworth 

Mr.  Porter,  in  whose  house  His  Majesty 
had  slept  in  the  time  of  the  war.  Deeming  it 
advisable  to  give  the  fellow  no  further  occasion 
of  thinking  where  he  had  seen  him,  the  King  told 
him,  "Certainly,  friend,  you  have  seen  me  at  Mr. 
Porter's,  for  I  served  him  a  good  while  above  a 
year."  At  this  the  hostler  replied,  "Oh,  then  I 
remember  you  a  boy  there,"  and  desired  the  King 
to  drink  a  pot  of  beer  with  him.  Excusing  him- 
self by  saying  that  he  must  go  and  wait  on  his 
master,  and  get  his  dinner  ready,  and  promising 
to  share  a  pot  with  him  on  their  return  from 
London  in  about  three  weeks,  Charles  sought 
the  shelter  of  the  inn,  where  he  remained  until 
Lord  Wilmot  rode  into  the  town.  As  soon  as 
Peters  announced  his  arrival,  they  took  horse 
and  galloped  off  on  the  London  road,  which  they 
left  as  soon  as  Lord  Wilmot  joined  them,  taking 
what  they  supposed  was  the  road  to  Yeovil,  but 
which  led  them  at  about  nightfall  to  Broad  Wind- 
sor, where  they  found  shelter  in  an  upper  cham- 
ber of  a  small  inn  kept  by  Rice  Jones.  In  the 
interval  the  hue  and  cry  raised  by  the  hostler  and 
those  in  Charmouth  who  listened  to  him, 
reached  Captain  Macy.  He  rushed  off  with  a 
party  in  pursuit  of  the  royal  fugitive.  At  Bur- 
port  he  learned  from  the  hostler  that  the  party 


The  Royal  Oak  169 

had  gone  on  to  London,  but  all  traces  of  them 
disappeared  before  Dorchester  was  reached. 

The  following  morning  the  King  returned  to 
Trent.  Upon  his  arrival  he  sent  a  message  to 
Salisbury  for  Colonel  Robert  Phillips,  to  learn 
what  could  be  done  in  the  way  of  getting  a  ship. 
Phillips  chartered  one,  but  before  their  plans 
could  be  completed  it  was  prest  to  carry  troops 
to  Jersey.  The  next  messenger  was  sent  farther 
into  Sussex,  and,  in  order  to  be  nearer  the  point 
of  embarkation  should  a  vessel  be  procured,  His 
Majesty  arranged  with  Colonel  Phillips  to  find 
him  a  hiding  place  nearer  Salisbury.  He  selected 
a  house  owned  by  Sergeant  Hyde,  and  which  was 
then  occupied  by  the  widow  of  his  elder  brother. 
It  was  near  Heale,  three  miles  from  Salisbury. 

As  soon  as  the  necessary  arrangements  were 
completed  Colonel  Phillips  went  to  Trent  and 
returned  with  the  King,  the  latter  traveling  in  his 
old  disguise  of  a  serving  man  and  for  security 
riding  in  front  of  Mistress  Juliana  Coningsby.  In 
this  journey  he  passed  through  the  middle  of  a 
regiment  of  horse  and  also  met  Disborow,  who 
was  at  the  time  walking  down  a  hill  with  three 
or  four  men  who  had  lodged  with  him  the  night 
before  in  Salisbury. 

In  four  or  five  days  Phillips  returned  to  Heale 


170  Wadsworth 

to  advise  Charles  that  a  vessel  had  been  secured 
at  Shoreham.  Upon  which,  at  two  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  they  went  out  of  the  house  by  a  back 
way,  and,  after  traveling  fifteen  miles,  met  Lord 
Wilmot  and  Colonel  Gunter.  The  latter  con- 
ducted them  to  the  home  of  his  brother-in-law  at 
Hambleton,  seven  miles  from  Portsmouth.  The 
next  day  they  went  to  Brighthelmstone,  where 
they  met  the  merchant  Francis  Mansel,  who  had 
procured  the  vessel,  and  its  master,  Captain  Nich- 
olas Tattersall.  As  they  were  all  sitting  together 
the  master  of  the  vessel  looked  very  much  at  the 
King,  who  was  at  the  time  in  the  same  gray 
cloth  suit.  After  they  had  supped  he  took  the 
merchant  aside  and  said  that  he  had  not  dealt 
fairly  with  him,  for  though  he  had  given  him  a 
very  good  price  for  carrying  over  the  gentleman, 
he  had  not  been  clear  with  him,  "for,"  said  he, 
"it  is  the  King,  and  I  very  well  know  him  to  be 
so."  Upon  which,  the  merchant  denying  it,  as  at 
the  time  he  only  knew  His  Majesty  as  a  person  of 
quality  who  had  escaped  from  the  battle  of 
Worcester,  the  master  answered,  "I  know  him 
very  well,  for  he  took  my  ship,  together  with 
other  fishing  vessels,  at  Brighthelmstone  in  1648. 
But  be  not  troubled  at  it,  for  I  think  to  do  God 
and  my  country  a  good  service  in  preserving  the 
King,  and,  by  the  grace  of  God,  I  will  venture 


CHARLES 


The  Royal  Oak  173 

my  life  and  all  for  him  and  set  him  safely  on 
shore,  if  I  can,  in  France." 

When  the  merchant  advised  Lord  Wilmot  and 
the  King  of  the  conversation,  His  Majesty  told 
him  that  what  Captain  Tattersall  said  was  true 
and  that  he  had,  when  in  command  of  his  fathers 
fleet,  taken  the  vessels  as  stated,  but  let  them 
go  again.  After  what  had  happened,  and  remem- 
bering their  mishap  at  Charmouth,  it  was  not 
deemed  prudent  to  let  the  captain  go  home  lest 
he  should  be  asking  advice  of  his  wife  or  any- 
body else,  so  they  kept  him  with  them  at  the  inn 
where  they  sat  up  all  night  drinking  beer  and 
taking  tobacco. 

About  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  King 
and  his  company  went  towards  Shoreham,  where 
both  he  and  Lord  Wilmot  got  into  the  ship.  They 
went  out  of  port  about  seven  and  stood  all  day 
with  easy  sail  towards  the  Isle  of  Wight,  the 
vessel  being  bound  for  Pool  with  a  load  of  sea 
coal.  About  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  the 
wind  being  then  full  north,  its  bow  was  turned 
towards  France  and  the  next  morning,  a  little 
before  day,  they  saw  the  coast.  As  the  tide  failed 
them,  the  King  and  Lord  Wilmot  were  rowed 
ashore  and  went  up  into  the  town  of  Fecamp, 
where  they  remained  until  they  procured  horses 
to  carry  them  to  Rouen,  from  whence  they  sent 
notice  to  Queen  Henrietta  in  Paris. 


174  Wadsworth 

Within  an  hour  after  the  King  landed  the  wind 
changed  and  Captain  Tattersall  was  carried 
directly  to  Pool  without  its  being  known  that 
he  had  been  on  the  coast  of  France.1  Such,  in 
brief,  is  the  narrative  of  Charles  XL's  escape  from 

1  Charles  II.'s  love  of  talking  referred  to  by  Cun- 
ningham and  others  in  a  preceding  note  is  aptly  illus- 
trated in  the  Diary  of  Samuel  Pepys,  who  wrote  as  fol- 
lows on  May  23,  1660,  the  day  Charles  sailed  from  Hol- 
land for  England.  "All  the  afternoon  the  King  walked 
here  and  there,  up  and  down,  very  active  and  stirring. 
Upon  the  quarterdeck  he  fell  into  discourse  of  his  es- 
cape from  Worcester,  where  it  made  me  ready  to  weep 
to  hear  the  stories  that  he  told  of  his  difficulties  that  he 
had  passed  through,  as  his  traveling  three  days  and 
four  nights  on  foot,  every  step  up  to  his  knees  in  dirt, 
with  nothing  but  a  green  coat  and  a  pair  of  country 
breeches  on,  and  a  pair  of  country  shoes  that  made  him 
so  sore  all  over  his  feet  that  he  could  scarce  stir.  Yet 
he  was  forced  to  run  away  from  a  miller  and  other 
company  that  took  them  for  rogues.  His  sitting  at  a 
table  at  one  place,  where  the  master  of  the  house,  that 
had  not  seen  him  in  eight  years,  did  know  him,  but 
kept  it  private;  where  at  the  same  table  there  was  one 
that  had  been  of  his  own  regiment  at  Worcester,  could 
not  know  him,  but  made  him  drink  the  King's  health, 
and  said  that  the  King  was  at  least  four  fingers  higher 
than  he.  At  another  place  he  was  by  some  servants  in 
the  house  made  to  drink,  that  they  might  know  him 
not  to  be  a  Roundhead,  which  they  swore  he  was.  In 
another  place  at  his  inn,  the  master  of  the  house,  as 
the  King  was  standing  with  his  hands  upon  the  back 
of  a  chair  by  the  fireside,  kneeled  down  and  kissed  his 
hand,  privately  saying  that  he  would  not  ask  him  who 
he  was,  but  bid  God  bless  him  whither  he  was  going. 
Then  the  difficulty  to  get  a  boat  going  into  France 
when  he  was  fain  to  plot  with  the  master  thereof  to 
keep  his  design  from  the  foreman  and  a  boy  (which 


The  Royal  Oak  175 

Worcester  and  his  wanderings  in  the  southern 
counties  of  England  before  he  could  find  a  vessel 
to  carry  him  across  the  Channel,  and  that  he  did 
not  forget  those  who  risked  their  lives  and  prop- 
erty aiding  and  sheltering  him  when  there  was  a 
price  upon  his  head,  is  evidenced  by  the  following 
pensions  which  were  granted  after  the  Restora- 
tion: 

Lady  Fisher,  nee  Jane  Lane,1  pension  for 
life  looo  pounds 

Colonel  Lane,  pension  for  life 500        " 

Anne  Wyndham,  widow  of  Sir  Francis 
Wyndham,  pension  in  which  her  daugh- 
ters Rachel  and  Frances  had  a  joint 
reversionary  interest  for  their  lives....  400 

Robert  Phillips,  pension  for  life 400        " 

Mr.  Whitgreave,  an  annuity  with  reversion 
to  his  son  Thomas  200  " 

Richard  Pendrell  and  his  heirs  forever,  per 
annum  100  " 

William  Pendrell  and  his  heirs  forever,  per 
annum  100  " 

Humphrey,  John  &  George  Pendrell  and 
their  heirs  forever,  per  annum  severally.  100  marks 

Elizabeth  Yates,  widow,  and  her  heirs  for- 
ever, per  annum  50  pounds 

was  all  the  ship's  company)  and  so  got  to  Fecamp  in 
France.  At  Rouen  he  looked  so  poorly  that  the  peo- 
ple went  into  his  rooms  before  he  went  away  to  see 
whether  he  had  not  stole  something  or  other." 

1  Jane  Lane's  pension  was  accompanied  by  a  watch, 
which  by  the  express  request  of  the  King,  was  to 
descend  by  succession  to  the  eldest  daughter  of  the 
house  of  Lane.  The  Colonel  Lane  pension  ceased  in 
the  reign  of  George  I.  The  Pendrell  and  Yates  an- 
nuities are  still  paid,  the  last  reference  to  them  in  the 
daily  press  being  published  in  the  New  York  Sun  in 


176  Wadsworth 

the  form  of  a  despatch  from  St.  John,  N.  B.,  Canada, 
September  20,  1902.  It  is  reproduced  as  an  evidence  that 
at  least  one  family  did  not  suffer  when  its  members 
trusted  a  Prince. 

"A  gift  from  Charles  II.  Dr.  Walker  benefiting  by 
the  gratitude  of  a  King  250  years  ago.  St.  John,  N.  B., 
Sept.  20,  1902.  Because  in  September,  251  years  ago, 
the  Pendrells,  of  Boscobel  in  Staffordshire,  England, 
saved  the  life  of  Charles  Stuart,  afterward  Charles  II., 
Thomas  Walker,  M.  D.,  of  St.  John,  gets  10  pounds  per 
annum.  For  he  is  a  descendant  of  the  Pendrells.  After 
Charles  became  King,  Farmer  Pendrell  was  suitably 
remembered.  One  of  the  estates  which  Charles  granted 
afterward  was  made  chargeable  with  a  perpetual  pay- 
ment of  100  pounds  to  each  of  the  other  four  brothers, 
and  50  pounds  to  a  sister,  Elizabeth  Pendrell,  who 
shared  the  family  secret.  Dr.  Walker,  of  St.  John,  is  a 
descendant  of  Elizabeth  Pendrell.  There  were  five 
families  descended  from  her,  and  the  50  pounds  was 
divided,  so  that  the  representative  of  each  branch  gets 
10  pounds  a  year.  A  check  for  this  amount,  less  a 
small  commission,  comes  every  spring  to  Dr.  Walker 
from  a  solicitor  at  Lichfield,  England.  His  father  got 
it  before  him,  and  it  will  descend  to  his  son.  Once, 
when  in  England,  the  doctor  sought  to  learn  whose 
estate  was  still  paying  so  old  an  account,  but  the  solic- 
itor was  abroad." 

In  order  to  make  a  permanent  provision  for  the  con- 
tinuation of  the  Pendrells'  and  Yates'  pensions, 
Charles  II.,  on  July  24,  1675,  settled  by  patent  fee  farm 
rents  to  Sir  Walter  Wrottesley,  Bart.,  Richard  Con- 
greve  and  John  Richard,  Esqrs.,  charged  with  the 
pensions  granted  the  Pendrells  and  Yates  families. 


THE  PATENT, 
CHARTER  AND  DEED 


THE  PATENT,  CHARTER  AND  DEED 


November  3,  1620,  James  I.,  by  letters  patent, 
incorporated  the  Duke  of  Lennox,  Marquis  of 
Buckingham,  Marquis  of  Hamilton,  Earl  of  Arun- 
del,  Earl  of  Warwick  and  others  to  the  number 
of  forty  noblemen,  knights  and  gentlemen,  into 
what  was  afterwards  known  as  the  Plymouth 
Company,  the  object  of  which  was  the  planting, 
ruling  and  governing  of  New  England  in  Amer- 
ica, "and  granted  unto  them,  and  their  successors 
and  assigns,  all  that  part  of  America  lying  and 
being  in  breadth  from  forty  degrees  of  north 
latitude,  from  the  equinoctial  line  to  the  forty- 
eighth  degree  of  said  northerly  latitude  inclu- 
sively, and  in  length  of,  and  within  all  the  breadth 
aforesaid,  throughout  the  main  lands  from  sea 
to  sea."  The  patent  ordained  that  this  territory 
should  be  known  forever  as  New  England.  It  is 
also  the  foundation  of  all  subsequent  grants  made 
to  the  Colonies  in  New  England. 

On  March  19,  1628,  the  Plymouth  Company 
granted  unto  Sir  Henry  Roswell,  Sir  John  Young, 
Thomas  Southcoat,  John  Humphrey,  John  Endi- 
cott,  and  Simon  Whitcomb,  their  heirs  and  as- 
signs forever,  all  that  part  of  New  England  be- 
tween the  Merrimack  and  Charles  Rivers,  in  the 


180  Wadsworth 

bottom  of  Massachusetts  Bay,  and  three  miles 
to  the  north  and  south  of  every  part  of  the  Charles 
River,  and  three  miles  south  of  the  southernmost 
part  of  said  bay,  and  three  miles  to  the  northward 
of  every  part  of  the  Mernmack  River.  Charles 
I.  confirmed  this  patent  on  March  4,  1629,  and 
the  settlement  of  Massachusetts  was  commenced 
under  it. 

In  1630  the  council  of  Plymouth  granted  its 
President,  Robert,  Earl  of  Warwick,  "all  that 
part  of  New  England  in  America  which  lies  and 
extends  itself  from  a  river  there  called  the  Narra- 
gansett  River,  the  space  of  forty  leagues  upon  a 
straight  line,  near  the  seashore,  towards  the 
southwest,  west  and  by  south  or  west,  as  the 
coast  lyeth  towards  Virginia,  counting  three  miles 
to  the  league,  and  also  all  and  singular  the  lands, 
hereditaments  whatsoever,  lying  and  being  with- 
in the  lands  aforesaid,  north  and  south  in  latitude 
and  breadth,  and  in  length  and  longitude  of,  and 
within  all  the  breadth  aforesaid,  throughout  the 
main  lands  there,  from  the  western  ocean  to  the 
south  seas,  and  all  lands,  grounds,  soil,  wood  and 
woodlands,  grounds,  havens,  ports,  creeks,  rivers, 
waters,  fishings  and  hereditaments  whatsoever 
lying  within  the  said  space  and  every  part  and 
parcel  thereof,  and  also  all  lands  lying  in  America 
aforesaid,  in  the  said  seas  or  either  of  them,  on 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         181 

the  western  or  eastern  coasts  or  parts  of  the  said 
tracts  of  land  by  these  presents,  to  be  given  and 
granted."1  This  grant  was  subsequently  known 
as  the  Warwick  Patent  and  is  the  original  patent 
of  Connecticut. 

This  patent  was,  on  October  19,  1631,  trans- 
ferred by  the  Earl  of  Warwick  to  William  Vis- 
count Say  and  Seal,  Robert  Lord  Brooke,  Rob- 
ert Lord  Rich,  Charles  Fines,  Sir  Nathaniel  Rich, 
Sir  Richard  Saltonstall,  John  Pym,  John  Hamp- 
den,  John  Humphry,  Herbert  Pelham,  their  heirs 
and  assigns  and  their  associates  forever,  but  no 
steps  to  found  a  colony  were  made  until  July  7, 
1635,  when  William  Say  and  Seal,  Henry  Law- 
rence, Richard  Saltonstall,  George  Fenwick,  Ar- 
thur Hazelrigg  and  Henry  Darley  appointed 
John  Winthrop,  the  younger,  "Governor  of  the 
River  Connecticut  in  New  England,  and  of  the 
harbor  and  places  adjoining,"  for  the  space  of  one 
year  from  his  arrival  there.  The  articles  of  agree- 
ment between  the  parties  also  stipulated  that  as 
soon  as  Winthrop  came  to  the  Bay  he  should 
employ  at  least  fifty  able  men  to  build  a  fort  and 
houses  at  the  River  Connecticut,  and  the  harbor 

'This  grant,  according  to  President  Clap  of  Yale 
College,  extended  from  Point  Judith  to  New  York, 
and  from  thence  in  a  west  line  to  the  south  sea;  and  if 
the  whole  length  of  the  Narragansett  River  is  included, 
it  extended  as  far  north  as  Worcester.  Massachusetts. 


182  Wadsworth 

adjoining,  first  for  their  own  accommodation, 
and  also  houses  suitable  to  receive  men  of  qual- 
ity, the  latter  to  be  built  within  the  fort.  It  was 
this  clause  which  led  to  the  rumor  that  Pym, 
Hampden,  Hazelrigg,  Cromwell  and  others  who 
were  associated  with  them,  intended  to  leave 
England  and  settle  in  America.  They  were  ex- 
pected for  many  a  day,  or  at  least  until  the  suc- 
cesses of  the  Parliamentary  forces  under  Crom- 
well convinced  the  surviving  patentees  that  vic- 
tory was  assured,  the  rout  of  King  Charles'  forces 
at  Naseby  practically  putting  an  end  to  his  au- 
thority as  sovereign. 

In  addition  to  appointing  John  Winthrop,  Jr., 
Governor  of  the  River  Connecticut,  the  Warwick 
patentees  also  employed  Lion  Gardiner  to  com- 
mand the  fort  for  four  years,  subject  to  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Governor.  At  the  time  of  his  engage- 
ment, Gardiner  was  Master  of  the  Works  of  For- 
tification in  the  camp  of  Frederick  Henry,  Prince 
of  Orange,  in  the  Netherlands,  where  he  and 
John  Mason,  one  of  the  founders  of  Windsor  and 
the  leader  of  the  Connecticut  forces  in  the  Pequot 
war,  both  saw  much  active  service  under  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax.  Gardiner  was  born  in  England 
in  1599,  and  went  with  the  English  army  to  the 
Low  Countries,  where  he  met  Hugh  Peters,  and  the 
Rev.  John  Davenport,  one  of  the  founders  of  New 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         183 

Haven,  both  of  whom  were  at  the  time  connected 
with  a  Protestant  church  in  Rotterdam.  They 
urged  him  to  accept  the  offer  of  the  Warwick 
patentees  and  both  of  them  in  the  course  of  a 
few  years  met  him  in  New  England. 

Before  leaving  for  England,  Gardiner  was,  on 
July  10,  1635,  married  to  Mary  Wilemsen,  of 
Woerden.  They  proceeded  to  London,  where, 
after  entering  into  an  agreement  to  act  as  archi- 
tect, builder  and  engineer  of  the  town  and  fort  of 
defense  which  was  to  be  located  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Connecticut  River,  Gardiner  and  his  wife,  with 
her  maid,  Elizabeth  Colet,  sailed  on  August  n  for 
New  England,  with  Captain  Thomas  Webb,  in 
the  Batchelor.  After  a  voyage  of  three  months 
and  seventeen  days,  they  landed  on  November 
28  in  Boston,  where  Gardiner  met  Winthrop. 

As  arrangements  for  the  reception  of  Gardiner 
and  his  wife  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut  had 
not  been  made,  the  citizens  of  Boston  solicited 
his  advice  in  completing  their  fort,  and  while 
each  of  them  were  contributing  fourteen  days' 
labor,  or  the  equivalent  in  money,  a  force  of 
twenty  men  under  Lieutenant  Gibbons  was  sent 
by  Winthrop  to  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut 
River  to  erect  suitable  buildings  for  Gardiner 
and  his  wife,  both  of  whom  went  there  as  soon 
as  the  work  at  Boston  was  completed. 


184  Wadsworfh 

Winthrop  and  Gardiner  learned  upon  their  ar- 
rival in  Boston,  that  a  company  had  gone  from 
Dorchester  and  Watertown  to  settle  upon  the 
Connecticut  River,  and  that  the  inhabitants  of 
Newtown  intended  to  go  there  the  following 
summer,  but  with  the  understanding  that  they 
were  not  to  go  beyond  the  limits  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts patent.  The  desire  to  remove  to  the 
Connecticut  valley  was  first  expressed  in  1634, 
and  before  the  inhabitants  of  the  three  towns 
named  took  their  departure  they  were  joined  by 
Roxbury,  under  the  leadership  of  William  Pyn- 
chon.  One  of  the  reasons  for  the  change  of  abode, 
as  stated  at  the  time  and  also  subsequently  re- 
peated by  John  Winthrop,  Jr.,  in  his  address  to 
Charles  II.,  when  the  colony  of  Connecticut  was 
seeking  a  charter,  was  that  the  place  was  not 
large  enough  for  so  great  a  number  if  they  re- 
mained together.  The  true  reason,  however,  was 
that  the  residents  of  the  towns  named  were  dis- 
satisfied with  the  management  of  public  affairs 
and  decided  to  establish  a  colony  in  which  the 
foundation  of  authority  rested  upon  the  free  con- 
sent of  the  people.  This  was  Hooker's  idea.  In 
Dorchester  that  ambitious,  but  restless,  spirit, 
Roger  Ludlow,  was  a  leader.  He  had  been  an 
Assistant  in  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts 
for  four  years  and  Deputy-Governor  in  1634.  He 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         185 

hoped  to  be  Governor  in  1635,  but  was  defeated 
by  the  jealousy  of  the  deputies,  who  had  taken 
offense  at  some  remarks  made  by  him.  John 
Haynes  was  chosen  notwithstanding  Ludlow's  pro- 
test, and  in  order  to  hide  his  humiliation  he  decided 
to  follow  Newtown's  lead.  The  inhabitants  of  the 
last  named  town  received  permission  to  seek  a  more 
convenient  place  of  residence  on  May  14,  1634.  A 
like  permission  was  granted  Roxbury  and  Water- 
town  on  May  16,  1635,  and  Dorchester  on  June  3  of 
the  same  year. 

In  the  location  of  the  new  colony,  the  residents 
of  Newtown  were  no  doubt  guided  by  the  favor- 
able reports  received  by  John  Haynes,  one  of  the 
leaders  in  the  movement,  although  he  was  at  that 
time  Governor  of  Massachusetts,  while  Roger 
Ludlow  had  also  acquired  considerable  informa- 
tion from  traders  and  the  Pequots,  who  had  twice 
visited  him  during  his  term  of  office  as  Deputy- 
Governor.  In  1635,  a  few  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Watertown  and  Dorchester  came  to  the  Con- 
necticut River  and  settled  at  Wethersfield  and 
Windsor.  The  Hooker  company,  however,  did 
not  leave  Newtown  until  May  31,  1636.  Prior  to 
its  departure  the  General  Court  of  Massachu- 
setts, at  its  session  on  March  3,  1635-6,  appointed 
a  commission  composed  of  Roger  Ludlow,  Wil- 
liam Pynchon,  John  Steele,  William  Swaine, 


186  Wadsworth 

Henry  Smith,  William  Phelps,  William  West- 
wood  and  Andrew  Ward,  giving  them  full  power 
and  authority  for  the  space  of  one  year  to  hear 
and  determine  in  a  judicial  way  all  differences 
that  might  arise  in  the  new  plantation.  At  the 
time  that  this  step  was  taken,  it  was  understood 
that  those  who  were  withdrawing  from  the  vicin- 
ity of  Boston  were  to  remain  within  the  limits  of 
the  Massachusetts  patent,  but  all  of  them,  possi- 
bly because  they  did  not  have  the  means  of  de- 
termining where  the  boundary  was,  except  the 
inhabitants  of  Roxbury,  who  founded  Agawam, 
afterwards  known  as  Springfield,  passed  beyond 
it.  When  this  was  discovered  no  steps  were 
taken  to  make  a  change,  and  when  the  members 
of  the  commission  held  their  last  meeting  on 
February  21,  1636-7,  they  took  the  first  step 
towards  separating  the  towns  on  the  river  from 
Massachusetts  by  changing  the  name  of  New- 
town  to  Hartford,  Watertown  to  Wethersfield, 
and  Dorchester  to  Windsor. 

The  first  General  Court  in  Connecticut  met  at 
Hartford,  May  i,  1637.  While  in  session  it  or- 
dered "that  there  shalbe  an  offensive  warr  against 
the  Pequoitt,  and  that  there  shalbe  90  men  levied 
out  of  the  3  Plantacons,  Harteford,  Weathersfeild 
&  Windsor."  Of  this  number  Hartford  contrib- 
uted forty-two  Windsor  thirty  and  Wethersfield 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         187 

eighteen.  The  trouble  between  the  English  and 
the  Pequots  began  in  1634,  when  two  traders, 
Captains  Stone  and  Norton,  came  into  the  river 
with  a  design  of  trading  with  the  Dutch  at  the 
House  of  Hope.  They  employed  Indians  t<o 
direct  them  to  Dutch  Point,  as  they  did  not  know 
the  channel.  All  of  them  were  murdered.  In 
1635,  Captain  John  Oldham,  who  was  trading 
with  the  Indians  at  Block  Island,  was  also  mur- 
dered. 

When  this  was  reported  to  the  authorities  of 
Massachusetts  Bay,  the  Governor,  Sir  Harry 
Vane,  upon  the  advice  of  the  magistrates 
and  ministers,  decided  to  retaliate.  This  meant 
an  Indian  war.  Lion  Gardiner,  who  of  all 
men  was  vitally  interested  in  it,  as  his  fort  was 
on  the  edge  of  the  Pequot  country,  was  not  ad- 
vised of  it  until  late  in  the  summer,  when 
George  Fenwick  came  to  the  mouth  of  the  Con- 
necticut, by  way  of  Boston,  in  company  with 
Governor  Winthrop  and  Hugh  Peters.  From 
the  early  spring  until  the  date  of  their  arrival, 
Gardiner  had  been  expecting  three  hundred  able- 
bodied  men,  as  promised  by  the  Warwick  pat- 
entees, when  he  made  his  contract  with  them, 
but,  as  he  subsequently  remarked,  "Our  expecta- 
tions came  only  to  two  men  (George  Fenwick  and 
his  man  servant),  and  they  did  not  come  to  stay." 


188  Wadsworth 

Before  Gardiner's  visitors  returned  to  Boston, 
they  promised  to  do  what  they  could  to  have  the 
Governor  defer  hostilities  for  a  year  or  two,  or 
at  least  until  the  fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  Con- 
necticut River  was  garrisoned  and  well  supplied 
with  provisions,  as  at  that  time  Gardiner  had  but 
twenty-four  men,  women  and  children,  one  of  the 
latter  being  his  infant  son  David,1  the  first  white 
child  born  within  the  limits  of  Connecticut,  and 
not  enough  food  to  keep  them  two  months  unless 
he  could  save  the  crop  of  corn  which  was 
planted  two  miles  from  the  fort  and  could  not 
be  gathered  if  there  was  trouble  with  the  Indians. 

Before  Fenwick  and  Winthrop  reached  Boston, 
John  Endicott  had  departed  with  ninety  men  for 

1  David  Gardiner  was  born  at  Saybrook  fort,  April 
29,  1636,  and  was  as  has  been  stated,  the  first  white 
child  born  in  Connecticut.  He  remained  there  until 
1639.  when  his  father  removed  to  Gardiner's  Island. 
He  was  sent  to  England  for  an  education  and  married 
there.  Lion  Gardiner  died  in  1663,  having  willed  all 
his  property  to  his  wife.  She  died  in  1665  and  in  her 
will  said:  "I  give  my  island  Isle  of  Wight  to  my  son 
David,  wholly  to  be  his  during  his  life  and  after  his 
decease  to  his  next  heire  maile  begotten  by  him,  and 
to  be  entayled  to  the  first  heires  maile  proceeding  from 
the  body  of  my  deceased  husband  Lion  Gardiner  and 
me  his  wife  Mary,  from  time  to  time  for  ever.  Never 
to  be  sold  from  them  and  to  be  a  continuous  inheri- 
tance to  the  heires  of  me  and  my  husband  for  ever." 
The  island  is  owned  to  this  day  by  the  Gardiner  fam- 
ily. As  for  David,  he  succeeded  his  father  and  died 
very  suddenly  in  1689  at  Hartford,  where  he  was  called 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         189 

Block  Island,  where  he  killed  fourteen  Indians, 
destroyed  their  corn,  staved  in  their  canoes  and 
burned  every  wigwam  he  could  find.  He  then 
sailed  for  the  Pequot  country,  where,  after  par- 
leying with  the  natives,  he  destroyed  their  vil- 
lages and  growing  corn,  after  which  he  sailed 
away,  leaving  the  little  fortress  at  the  mouth  of 
the  river  the  only  habitation  of  the  white  man 
upon  which  the  Pequots  could  wreak  their  ven- 
geance. They  lay  in  wait  for  every  one  seen  out- 
side of  the  fort,  killing  a  few,  and  destroying  all 
of  the  property  not  within  range  of  the  guns. 
In  February  the  General  Court,  sitting  at  Hart- 

on  business.  His  grave  is  in  the  burying  ground  back 
of  the  Center  Church.  The  head  stone  bears  the  fol- 
lowing inscription: 

Here  lyeth  the  body  of  David  Gardiner  of  Gardiner's 
Island.  Deceased  July  10,  1689,  in  the  fifty  fourth  year 
of  his  age.  Well.  Sick.  Dead  in  one  hours  space. 

Engrave  the  remembrance  of  Death  on  thine  heart, 

When  as  thou  dost  see  how  swiftly  hours  depart. 

David  Gardiner  was  succeeded  by  his  son  John,  born 
April  19,  1661,  and  died  at  Groton,  Conn.,  in  1738,  from 
injuries  received  by  a  fall  from  a  horse.  He  married  a 
daughter  of  John  Allyn  of  Hartford.  It  was  in  their 
day  that  the  pirate  Captain  Kidd  landed  on  the  Island 
and  buried  the  iron  chests  in  which  there  were  747^ 
ounces  of  gold,  606^2  ounces  of  silver  and  three  bags  of 
precious  stones.  The  Captain  also  demanded  refresh- 
ments for  himself  and  crew  and  requested  Mrs.  Gardi- 
ner to  roast  a  pig.  She  cooked  it  very  nicely  and  the 
Captain  was  so  well  pleased  with  it  that  he  made  her  a 
present  of  a  piece  of  silk,  a  sample  of  cloth  of  gold., 
which  is  still  in  the  possession  of  her  descendants. 


190  Wadsworth 

ford,  sent  Captain  John  Mason  with  twenty  men. 
to  reinforce  the  garrison,  and  advised  the  Gov- 
ernor of  Massachusetts  of  the  evils  growing  out 
of  Endicott's  expedition.  After  each  attack  the 
Indians  became  bolder.  Finally,  in  April,  they 
ascended  the  river  as  far  as  Wethersfield,  where 
they  killed  six  men  and  two  women  and  took  two 
maidens  captive.  They  also  killed  twenty  cows 
and  destroyed  other  property.  This  act  forced 
the  General  Court  to  declare  war  on  the  Pequots. 

Within  a  few  days  of  the  Indians'  attack  on 
Wethersfield,  John  Underhill,  who  had  served 
under  Endicott,  was  sent  from  Massachusetts 
with  twenty  men  to  reinforce  Gardiner's  garrison. 
Upon  his  arrival,  Mason  and  his  men  returned 
to  Hartford,  but  within  a  month  the  doughty 
captain  was  again  en  route  for  the  mouth  of  the 
river  with  the  ninety  men  levied  in  the  three  river 
towns  and  seventy  Mohegan  Indians  under  Un- 
cas.  They  sailed  from  Hartford  on  May  10  and 
were  five  days  in  reaching  Saybrook,  where  nine- 
teen men  under  Underhill  were  added  to  the 
forces. 

On  the  morning  of  May  25,  about  two  hours 
before  day,  Mason  attacked  and  burned  the  Pe- 
quot  fort.  About  five  hundred  Indians,  men, 
women  and  children,  were  destroyed,  while  only 
seven  were  taken  prisoners  and  seven  escaped. 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         191 

This  slaughter,  with  the  swamp  fight  that  fol- 
lowed, gave  the  colony  of  Connecticut  a  title  to 
all  of  the  Pequot  country,  and  upon  it,  together 
with  the  deed  of  purchase  from  the  Indians,  as 
well  as  the  promise  of  George  Fenwick,  the  foun- 
ders of  the  colony  and  their  ancestors  based  their 
claim  to  the  land  which  was  subsequently  cov- 
ered by  the  charter. 

On  February  9,  1637-8,  the  General  Court  again 
met  at  Hartford,  and  after  transacting  some  busi- 
ness about  the  price  of  corn  and  the  payment  of 
the  expenses  of  the  Pequot  war,  Agawam 
(Springfield)  being  included  in  the  levy,  it  was 
dissolved,  no  further  attendance  being  expected 
from  its  members  unless  they  were  chosen  for 
the  next  Court.  It  met  March  8,  Agawam  being 
represented  by  William  Pynchon.  No  fur- 
ther change  was  made  until  January  14,  1638-9, 
when  the  inhabitants  of  Windsor,  Hartford  and 
Wethersfield  met  and  adopted  the  Fundamental 
Orders.  The  first  general  meeting  of  the  free- 
men under  them  was  held  April  n,  1639,  when 
John  Haynes,  of  Hartford,  was  chosen  Governor 
"for  the  yeare  ensueing  and  until  a  new  be  chos- 
en," Roger  Ludlow,  of  Windsor,  Deputy-Gov- 
ernor, Edward  Hopkins,  Secretary,  and  Thomas 
Welles,  Treasurer. 

Edward  Hopkins,  the  first  Secretary  of  the  Col- 


192  Wadsworth 

ony,  was  born  at  Shrewsbury,  England,  in  1600. 
He  amassed  a  fortune  as  a  merchant  in  trade  with 
Turkey.  Having  become  imbued  with  the  Puri- 
tan ideas  of  John  Davenport,  he  decided  to  ac- 
company that  worthy  divine  and  Theophilus 
Eaton  when  they  sailed  for  Boston  in  1637.  Hop- 
kins was  also  related  in  a  manner  by  marriage 
with  the  latter,  he  having  married  Ann  Yale, 
whose  mother  was  Theophilus  Eaton's  second 
wife.  Instead  of  accompanying  Davenport  and 
Eaton  to  Quinnipiack,  where  they  founded  New 
Haven  the  following  year,  Edward  Hopkins  lo- 
cated in  Hartford.  In  1640  he  was  chosen  Gov- 
ernor. Between  that  time  and  1654  he  was  seven 
times  re-elected  to  that  office.  He  also  served  as 
Deputy-Governor  for  six  years,  was  an  Assistant 
and  a  Commissioner  of  the  United  Colonies. 

In  1654,  upon  the  death  of  an  elder  brother,  he 
returned  to  England  to  look  after  an  estate  which 
he  inherited.  Upon  his  arrival  Cromwell  ap- 
pointed him  Warden  of  the  Fleet,  a  post  which 
had  been  filled  by  his  brother.  He  was  afterwards 
a  Commisioner  of  the  Admiralty  and  the  Navy, 
and  also  a  member  of  Parliament.  The  prompt 
appreciation  of  his  abilities,  as  well  as  the  infirm 
state  of  his  health,  induced  him  to  remain  in  London. 

While  Edward  Hopkins  lived  (his  death  oc- 
curred December  5,  1657,)  the  New  England  Col- 


The  Patent,  Charier  and  Deed         193 

onies  had  a  firm  friend  in  him.  He  assisted  their 
agents  with  advice,  left  a  portion  of  his  estate  for 
the  encouragement  of  learning  at  the  grammar 
schools  and  colleges,1  and,  as  a  mark  of  appre- 
ciation for  the  many  favors  shown  him  by  rela- 
tives and  friends  in  New  Haven,  he  printed  at 
his  own  expense  the  laws  compiled  for  that  col- 
ony, and  in  doing  so  gave  the  followers  of  Dav- 
enport and  Eaton  a  code  in  book  form  seventeen 
years  before  Connecticut.2 

'The  following  is  the  portion  of  Edward  Hopkins' 
will  referred  to:  "And  the  residue  of  my  Estate  there 
(in  New  England)  I  do  hereby  give  and  bequeath  unto 
my  father  Theophilus  Eaton  Esqr;  Mr.  John  Daven- 
port; Mr.  John  Cullick  and  Mr.  Wm.  Goodwin,  in  full 
asurance  of  their  Trust  and  Faithfulness  in  disposing  of 
it  in  according  to  the  interest  and  purpose  of  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Hopkins,  which  is  to  give  some  Encouragement 
unto  the  foreign  Plantations  for  the  breeding  up  of 
Hopefull  youth  in  the  way  of  Learning  both  at  ye 
Cramer  School  and  Colledge,  for  the  public  service  of 
the  Country  in  future  times."  Owing  to  dissensions 
in  the  Church  at  Hartford  and  in  which  the  members 
of  the  General  Court  took  an  active  interest,  this  fund 
was  not  surrendered  to  the  parties  named  in  the  will 
until  March,  1664,  at  which  time  John  Davenport  and 
William  Goodwin  were  the  only  surviving  trustees.  In 
the  division  Hartford  wa_s  given  400  pounds,  while  the 
balance,  including  500  pounds  to  come  from  the  estate 
in  England,  was  divided  between  New  Haven  and  Had- 
ley,  100  pounds  out  of  the  share  of  the  latter  being 
given  to  Harvard. 

2  Until  the  year  1673  the  laws  of  the  colony  of  Con- 
necticut were  kept  in  manuscript  and  were  promulgated 
by  sending  copies  of  them  to  the  several  towns.  At  a 
General  Court,  held  at  Hartford  October  10,  1672,  it 


194  Wadsworth 

Upon  the  expiration  of  his  engagement  with 
the  Warwick  patentees,  Lion  Gardiner  purchased 

was  ordered  that  the  laws  of  the  colony  should  be 
printed.  Each  family  in  the  Plantation  was  also  re- 
quired to  purchase  a  copy  of  the  Law  Book.  The  Law 
Books  were  to  be  paid  for  when  delivered  either  in 
silver  or  wheat;  "those  tha.t  pay  in  silver  to  pay  twelve 
pence  a  book;  and  those  that  pay  in  wheat  to  pay  a 
peck  and  a  half  a  book,  and  those  that  have  not  these 
things  to  pay  two  shillings  in  pease  for  a  book,  pease 
at  three  shillings  per  bushel."  This  was  the  first 
printed  edition  of  the  Connecticut  laws.  It  was  printed 
by  Samuel  Green  and  was  issued  after  October,  1673, 
when  the  court  appointed  Mr.  Samuel  Wyllys  and  Mr. 
James  Richards  to  compare  one  of  the  Law  Bookes 
with  the  originall  and  see  that  the  printer  rectify  the 
errataes  according  to  his  covenant."  Prior  to  this  date 
Roger  Ludlow  had  compiled  what  is  usually  designated 
as  the  "Code  of  1650."  It  was  not  printed  at  that  time 
nor  until  more  than  a  century  and  a  half  later.  This 
code  was  written  into  the  Law  Books  of  the  different 
towns.  One  of  these  books,  the  one  used  by  the  town 
of  Windsor,  still  exists  and  is  owned  by  the  Connecti- 
cut Historical  Society.  Of  the  Law  Books  of  1673, 
but  nine  are  known  to  exist.  There  is  one  in  His  Maj- 
esty's Public  Record  Office,  Chancery  Lane,  London: 
two  in  the  State  Library  at  the  Capitol,  Hartford;  one 
at  Trinity  College,  Hartford;  one  in  Yale  University 
Library;  one  in  Yale  Law  School  Library  at  New 
Haven;  one  in  the  Public  Library,  Boston,  Mass.;  one 
owned  by  the  Pennsylvania  Historical  Society,  Phila- 
delphia, Pa.,  and  one  by  the  Connecticut  Historical 
Society.  The  copy  owned  by  the  Connecticut  Histor- 
ical Society  was  located  in  1903  by  Joseph  Mitchelson, 
Tariffville,  Conn.,  in  the  office  of  General  John  B.  San- 
born,  St.  Paul,  Minn.,  and  was  purchased  for  the 
Society  by  James  J.  Goodwin.  It  is  in  its  original 
binding  and  is  the  copy  given  by  John  Allyn  to  Samuel 
Wyllys,  on  whose  grounds  the  Charter  Oak  stood. 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         195 

Gardiner's  Island1  (he  called  it  the  Isle  of  Wight) 
from  the  Indians  and  removed  there  with  his 
family,  as  well  as  a  number  of  the  men  who  had 
served  under  him  at  Saybrook  fort,  as  soon  as 
his  successor,  George  Fenwick,  arrived  from 
England  in  the  summer  of  1639.  While  Gardiner 
was  in  charge  neither  Hampden,  Pym  or  any  of 
the  others  named  in  the  patent  gave  the  settle- 
ment at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut  River  much 
attention.  All  of  them  were  busy  with  home 
affairs,  but  after  Hampden's  ship  money  trial  it 

1  The  Gardiner  family  has  an  old  Bible  which  be- 
longed to  Lion  Gardiner,  upon  a  blank  leaf  of  which 
the  following  is  written:  "In  the  year  of  our  Lord, 
1635,  the  loth  of  July,  came  I,  Lypn  Gardiner,  and 
Mary  my  wife,  from  Worden,  a  town  in  Holland,  where 
my  wife  was  born,  being  the  daughter  of  one  Diricke 
Willemson,  deureant;  her  mother's  name  was  Hachir, 
and  her  aunt,  sister  to  her  mother,  was  the  wife  of 
Wouter  leanerdson,  old  burger  Muster,  dwelling  in 
the  hostrade,  over  against  the  Bruser  in  the  Unicorne's 
head;  her  brother's  name  was  Punce  Garretson,  also 
old  burger  Muster.  We  came  from  Worden  to  London, 
and  from  thence  to  New  England,  and  dwelt  at  Say- 
brook  fort  four  years — it  is  at  the  mouth  of  Connecti- 
cut river — of  which  I  was  commander,  and  there  was 
born  unto  me  a  son,  named  David,  1635.  the  2Qth  of 
April,  the  first  born  in  that  place,  and  1638  a  daughter 
was  born,  named  Mary,  3Oth  of  August,  and  then  I 
went  to  an  island  of  my  own,  which  I  had  bought  and 
purchased  of  the  Indians,  called  by  them  Monchonack, 
by  us  Isle  of  Wight,  and  there  was  born  another 
daughter,  named  Elizabeth,  the  I4th  September,  1641, 
she  being  the  first  child  of  English  parents  that  was 
born  there." 


196  Wadsworth 

became  self-evident  to  those  who  were  opposed 
to  the  King's  unconstitutional  exercise  of  his 
prerogative  and  Laud's  domineering  methods  in 
religious  affairs,  that  the  time  had  come  to  leave 
England  or  resort  to  arms.  In  order  to  prepare 
for  the  former,  the  gentlemen  interested  in  the 
Warwick  patent  decided  to  send  one  of  their 
number  to  New  England  to  complete  the  prepa- 
rations which  were  begun  in  1635.  George  Fen- 
wick,  a  London  barrister,  who  had  visited  the 
fort  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut  in  1636,  was 
selected.  He  started  with  two  ships  in  charge, 
being  accompanied  by  his  wife,  Lady  Fenwick, 
sometime  known  as  Lady  Alice  Bottler  or  Butler, 
and  several  gentlemen  with  their  attendants. 
They  laid  the  foundations  of  Saybrook  and  so 
named  the  settlement  in  honor  of  the  two  princi- 
pals in  the  patent,  William  Viscount  Say  and 
Seal,  and  Robert  Lord  Brooke. 

The  year  after  Fenwick  left  England,  Charles 
I.  called  what  proved  to  be  the  Long  Parliament, 
which  eventually  dethroned,  tried  and  executed 
him.  As  soon  as  war  was  declared  in  England, 
emigration  to  America  ceased,  while  a  number 
of  the  leading  men  in  New  England  returned  to 
their  native  land,  where  they  took  up  arms  in  de- 
fense of  the  Parliament.  To  George  Fenwick  it 
also  meant  a  series  of  disappointments,  as  Hamp- 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         197 

den,  Pym,  Hazelrigg  and  others  who  were  inter- 
ested with  him  in  the  patent  were  so  actively  en- 
gaged in  public  affairs  that  they  did  not  have  the 
time  or  means  to  advance  the  interests  of  Saybrook. 
As  soon  as  the  novelty  of  the  situation  wore 
off,  Fenwick  saw  that  nothing  could  be  made  out 
of  the  enterprise,  while  his  training  as  a  barrister 
unfitted  him  for  agricultural  pursuits.  When  the 
inhabitants  of  the  river  towns  (Hartford,  Wind- 
sor and  Wethersfield)  learned  that  Saybrook  fort 
was  a  burden  to  Fenwick,  they  desired  him  to 
make  a  proposition  concerning  the  sale  of  the 
place,  and  finally,  after  some  correspondence  with 
his  associates  in  England,  he  offered  it  at  3,000 
pounds,  although  he  would  have  accepted  one- 
half  of  that  amount  providing  it  had  been  divided 
into  three  payments  of  500  pounds  per  annum. 
The  amount  demanded  was  more  than  the  towns 
could  pay,  but  they  made  a  bid  of  200  pounds  per 
annum  for  ten  years,  payable  in  the  products  of 
the  country,  for  the  whole  interest  at  Saybrook 
and  on  the  river.  Fenwick  did  not  accept  this, 
and  there  was  no  further  treaty  between  him  and 
the  colony  until  1644,  after  the  death  of  Hamp- 
den  and  Pym.1  At  the  time  it  was  apparent  to 

1  Hampden  was  in  1643  wounded  in  the  shoulder  at 
Chalgrave  field  and  died  from  the  effects  of  it.  Pym 
died  early  in  the  winter  of  1644,  worn  out  by  incessant 
labors  in  the  interest  of  the  Parliament. 


198  Wadsworth 

Fen  wick  that  in  the  event  of  the  King  being  vic- 
torious in  the  war  which  was  being  waged  be- 
tween the  Royalists  and  the  Parliamentary  forces, 
English  soil,  even  in  the  wilds  of  America,  would 
not  prove  an  asylum  for  his  associates  and  their 
followers.  According  to  his  advices  the  issue 
was  still  in  doubt  and  even  the  most  sanguine 
could  see  but  few  rays  of  hope  until  Cromwell's 
military  genius  swept  all  before  it  at  Marston 
Moor  and  Naseby. 

Knowing  that  defeat  meant  disaster,  Fenwick 
again  opened  negotiations  with  the  colony,  after 
having  sent  abroad  reports  that  he  intended  to 
impose  taxes  and  customs  on  vessels  entering  the 
river.  He  was  also  prompted  to  renew  the  nego- 
tiations on  account  of  the  fortifications  and  hous- 
ings at  the  fort  being  sadly  in  need  of  repair. 
The  palisades,  which  were  whole  trees  set  in  the 
ground,  were  so  rotten  that  they  could  almost 
be  pushed  over.1  Finally,  on  December  5,  1644, 
George  Fenwick  met  Edward  Hopkins,  John 
Haynes,  John  Mason,  John  Steele  and  James 
Boosy.  They  entered  into  an  agreemnt  under 
which  Fenwick  made  over  to  the  jurisdiction  of 
Connecticut,  Saybrook  fort  and  the  lands  upon 

1  See  the  George  Fenwick  letter  dated  Nov.  10,  1643, 
at  Saybrook  in  the  Barrington  Letters;  Egerton  2648, 
in  Bodleian  Library,  Oxford. 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         199 

the  river,  the  colony  agreeing  in  return  for  ten 
years,  from  the  first  of  the  next  March  ensuing, 
that  he  or  his  assigns  should  receive  two  pence 
for  each  bushel  of  corn  or  meal  and  six  pence  for 
each  one  hundred  of  biscuit  which  should  pass 
out  of  the  river  mouth ;  twelve  pence  per  annum 
for  each  milch  cow  and  mare  three  years  old  or 
upwards  within  any  of  the  towns  or  farms  upon 
the  river,  and  two  pence  per  annum  for  each  hog 
that  was  killed  within  the  limits  of  the  river. 
He  was  also  to  receive  twenty  shillings  on  each 
hogshead  of  beaver  traded  out  of  the  colony  and 
two  pence  on  each  pound  of  beaver  traded  within 
the  limits  of  the  river. 

Before  this  agreement  was  placed  on  record,1 
Fenwick,  on  February  17,  1646,  entered  into  a 
second  agreement,  which  was  signed  by  Edward 
Hopkins,  John  Talcott  and  Fenwick's  brother-in- 
law,  John  Cullick.  Under  it  Fenwick  or  his  as- 
signs were  to  receive  for  ten  years  one  hundred 
and  eighty  pounds  per  annum,  one-third  in  good 
wheat  at  four  shillings  per  bushel,  one-third  in 
peas  at  three  shillings  per  bushel  and  one-third  in 
rye  or  barley  at  three  shillings  per  bushel.  About 

1  The  General  Court  did  not  order  the  Fenwick  agree- 
ment to  be  placed  on  record  until  May  18,  1654,  when 
it  ordered  "that  the  Secretary  of  the  Courte  shall  truly 
in  the  Country  Book  of  Records  record  the  agreement 
of  the  jurisdictyon  with  Colonel  George  Fenwick,  Esq., 
about  the  forte." 


200  Wadsworth 

1,600  pounds  were  paid  under  this  agreement,  the 
bulk  of  it  passing  through  the  hands  of  John 
Cullick,1  who  represented  Fenwick,  the  latter  hav- 
ing returned  to  England  in  1648,  a  short  time  after 
the  death  of  his  wife. 

In  the  first  agreement  George  Fenwick  also 
promised  "that  all  the  lands  from  the  Narragan- 
sett  River  to  the  fort  at  Saybrook  mentioned  in  a 
patent  granted  by  the  Earl  of  Warwick  to  certain 
nobles  and  gentlemen,  should  fall  under  the  jur- 
isdiction of  Connecticut  if  it  came  into  his  pow- 
er." He  failed  to  keep  this  promise,  possibly  be- 
cause he  was  never  in  a  position  to  do  so,  neither 
did  he  favor  the  General  Court  with  a  copy  of  the 
patent,  which  was  destroyed  in  1647  ^n  the  Say- 
brook  fort  fire.  But  that  he  did  not,  after  his 
return  to  England,  forget  the  promise  was  after- 
wards shown  by  the  fact  that  Governor  Winthrop 
procured  from  Henry  Dalley,  the  executor  of  Ed- 
ward Hopkins,  a  copy  of  the  patent2  which  was 

1 A  few  of  the  receipts  given  by  Cullick  for  the  "fort 
rate"  are  still  extant,  several  of  them  being  published 
in  the  first  volume  of  the  Colonial  Records  of  Con- 
necticut. They  show  that  Hartford  paid  60  pounds, 
5  shillings  in  1654,  1655  and  1656-7;  that  Windsor  paid 
42  pounds  5  shillings  i  penny  in  1647,  and  26  pounds 
15  shillings  I  penny  in  1656;  that  Wethersfield  paid  49 
pounds  9  shillings  12  pence  in  1654  and  that  Farming- 
ton  paid  15  pounds  5  shillings  in  1654  and  1657. 

2  In  1662  when  forwarding  the  Charter  to  the  colony, 
Governor  Winthrop  enclosed  two  copies  of  the  War- 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         201 

found  among  that  gentleman's  papers,  and  it  is 
only  fair  to  Fenwick  to  presunffe  that  he  gave  it 
to  the  former  Governor  of  the  Colony. 

Upon  his  return  to  England,  George  Fenwick 
was  named  as  one  of  the  King's  Judges.  He  did 
not  sit,  neither  did  he  taken  an  active  part  in  the 
affairs  of  the  Commonwealth.  For  a  second  wife 
he  married  Katherine,  daughter  of  Sir  Arthur 
Hazelrigg.  She  survived  him,  his  death  occur- 
ring in  April,  1657.  In  his  will  he  left  "all  lands, 
chattels,  real  and  personal,  owned  by  him  in  New 
England,  to  his  sister  Elizabeth,  wife  of  John  Cul- 
lick,  and  her  children,  and  likewise  that  out  of 
itt  may  bee  had  five  hundred  pound,  which  I  doe 
hereby  give  to  ye  publique  use  of  that  country  of 
New  England,  if  my  loving  friend  Mr.  Edward 
Hopkins  think  it  fitt."  It  is  not  known  as  to 

wick  Patent,  both  of  which  were  made  from  the  one 
found  among  the  Hopkins'  papers  as  is  shown  by  the 
letter  of  acknowledgment  written  by  Daniel  Clark 
from  Windsor  on  November  17,  1662.  In  it  he  said, 
"We  have  received  the  Charter,  the  duplicate  and  the 
copy  of  ye  former  charter,  well  approved  and  liked  by 
all."  (See  Massachusetts  Historical  Collections,  Vol. 
XI.)  One  of  these  copies  is  still  preserved  in  the  files 
of  the  State  Department  of  Connecticut,  and  has  the 
following  written  in  what  is  believed  to  be  the  hand  of 
Governor  Winthrop  at  the  top  of  the  first  page:  "The 
copye  of  the  Patent  of  Connecticutt,  being  a  copy  of 
that  copy  wch  was  shewed  to  the  people  here  by  Mr. 
George  Fenwick.  Found  amongst  Mr.  Hopkins' 
papers." 


202  Wadsworth 

whether  Edward  Hopkins  ever  heard  of  this  be- 
quest, as  he  was  at  the  time  far  gone  with  con- 
sumption and  made  his  own  will  in  March  of  the 
same  year,  although  he  did  not  die  until  the  fol- 
lowing December.  Nothing  was  said  about  this 
bequest  until  the  will  was  presented  to  the  Gen- 
eral Court.  It  refused  to  surrender  Fenwick's 
estate  or  to  grant  administration  thereon  until 
an  equitable  settlement  of  accounts  should  be 
affected,  the  Court  claiming  that  Fenwick  had 
failed  to  fulfill  his  engagement  with  the  Colony 
to  secure  the  right  of  jurisdiction  to  the  territory 
covered  by  the  Warwick  patent.  Captain  Cul- 
lick  finally,  in  1660,  compromised  the  matter  with 
the  Court  by  the  repayment  of  500  pounds,1  which 

1  When  Mrs.  Cullick  was  advised  that  a  copy  of  the 
Warwick  Patent  had  been  found  among  Edward  Hop- 
kins' papers  she  presented  the  following  petition  to  the 
General  Court,  which  met  in  Hartford,  May  14,  1663: 

To  the  Honrd  Generall  Court  of  Connecticut  Jvris- 
diction,  now  assembled,  the  humble  petition  of  Eliza- 
beth Cullicke,  relict  to  Captayne  John  Cullick,  de- 
ceased, 

Humbly  sheweth: 

That  whereas  there  weare  entred  into  (by  yor  Peti- 
tioner's husband,)  certayne  obligations  for  the  make- 
ing  of  paymt  the  sum  of  fiue  hundred  pownds  vnto  this 
honord  Cort,  according  to  the  tymes  specifyed  in  the 
twoe  obligations  given  for  the  same,  together  with  the 
paymt  of  interest  in  case  of  falure  in  poynt  of  tyme, 
one  of  wch  obligations  hath  beene  satisfyed  &  taken 
vp,  &  the  other  prt  satisfyed,  viz:  one  hundred 
pounds,  foure  shillings,  tenpence,  being  payde,  so  that 
there  remaynes  one  hundred  fourty  &  nine  pounds. 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         203 

was  set  aside  to  pay  Governor  Winthrop's  ex- 
penses when  he  went  to  England  to  secure  the 
charter. 

No  effort  was  made  by  the  colony  to  procure  a 
charter  from  Cromwell,  although  it  was  well 
known  that  he  sympathized  with  those  who  had 
emigrated  to  America  in  order  to  escape  perse- 
cution for  their  belief,  while  on  the  other  hand  the 

fiftene  shillings,  twoe  pence,  by  the  sayd  obligation, 
for  yor  petitioner  to  pay,  as  executrix  vnto  her  late 
husband.  And  forasmuch  that  the  grownd  of  these  ob- 
ligations given  by  yor  petitioner's  husband,  was  vpon 
the  apprehention  that  there  had  beene  a  totall  falur  in 
the  brother  of  yor  petitioner,  George  Fenwick,  Esqr, 
respecting  his  procuring  of  a  Pattent  for  the  Collony, 
since  which  it  hath  appeared  that  there  was  a  mistake 
therein,  for  that  there  was  found  wth  the  Executor  of 
Mr.  Edward  Hopkins  some  such  writing,  wch  was  de- 
livered to  the  Honrd  John  Winthrop  Esqr,  Governor 
and  Agent  for  the  Collony,  whereby  he  was  advantaged 
in  the  soliciting  the  Kyngs  most  excellent  Majesty  for, 
and  in  procuring  of,  those  letters  Pattent  now  ob- 
tyned, — 

Wherefor  yor  Petitioner  doth  pray  this  Honrd 
Gen'rall  Cort,  that  they  will  please  to  accept  of  what 
hath  beene  already  payde;  and  that  you  would  remit 
the  one  hundred  fourty  nine  pounds,  fiftene  shillings 
twoe  pence,  by  obligation  remaineing;  which  wilbe  an 
acceptable  clemency  before  the  Lord  towards  yor  pe- 
titioner, and  noe  stratening  to  the  Treasury  of  this 
Honrd  Court.  And  yor  petitioner  shal  pray. 

Elizabeth   Cullick. 

The  following  paragraph  in  the  proceedings  of  the 
court  shows  what  was  done  with  it:  "The  petition  of 
Mrs.  Cullick  was  this  day  read  and  the  court  voted  that 
they  did  not  see  cause  to  make  any  abatement  of  the 
said  bill  according  as  she  petitioned." 


204  Wadsworth 

Protector  was  too  busy  with  European  affairs  to 
pay  any  attention  to  the  colonies  except  when  he 
suggested  that  the  New  Haven  people,  who  were 
almost  disheartened  by  a  series  of  disasters  on 
land  and  sea,  remove  to  the  recently  acquired 
island  of  Jamaica.1 

Upon  the  fall  of  the  Commonwealth  and  after 
the  news  of  the  Restoration  crossed  the  Atlantic, 
the  colony  of  Connecticut  followed  Massachu- 
setts' lead  in  making  a  formal  avowal  of  its  alle- 
giance to  the  crown  and  at  the  same  time  made 
its  first  move  towards  acquiring  a  charter,  as  with 
the  Dutch  on  one  side,  the  Indians  on  the  other 
and  Massachusetts  contending  for  more  terri- 
tory, the  three  river  towns  and  those  which  were 
allied  with  them  presented  a  very  forlorn  appear- 
ance, with  nothing  but  an  Indian  deed  and 
George  Fenwick's  promise  to  depend  upon  in  the 
event  of  a  contest.  Governor  Winthrop,  who  was 
selected  to  represent  the  colony  in  this  important 
matter,  was  requested  to  draw  up  an  address  to 
His  Majesty,  which  when  presented  at  the  May 
meeting  was  cordially  approved. 

In  his  address  Governor  Winthrop  said  that  the 
founders  of  the  colony  of  Connecticut  settled  in 
Massachusetts : 

1  Jamaica  was  taken  from  Spain  in  1655. 


JOHN    WINTHROP 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         207 

"neer  the  port  of  their  first  arrival  *  *  *  till  vpon 
experience  they  found  that  place  would  be  too  streight 
for  soe  great  a  number  if  they  should  continue  all  there 
together.  They  therefore  vndertooke  a  troublesome, 
hazardous  and  chargeable  discouery  of  the  more  inland 
parts  of  ye  Countrey;  where  comeing  to  ye  great  faire 
Riuer  of  Connecticut,  haueing  opertunity  by  the  free 
tender  of  ye  sale  of  some  larg  tracts  of  lands  fit  for  ye 
settling  of  diuers  Plantations  or  Townes,  profered  unto 
them  by  ye  Sachems  or  Heathen  Princes  and  with  ye 
concurrence  of  ye  other  natiues  vnder  them,  the  then 
proprietors  of  those  places,  they  thought  it  very  con- 
venient to  purchase  those  lands  of  them  who  appeared 
to  be  the  owners  and  possessors  of  ye  same,  which 
could  not  but  tend  to  ye  enlargement  of  his  Maties 
Dominions,  and  be  a  good  step  towards  ye  yet  further 
extent  thereof,  and  ye  benefit  of  ye  English  people. 
And  therevpon  transplanted  themselues  and  vs  to  this 
place,  where  we  were  but  now  in  a  manner  vpon  our 
very  beginnings  of  takeing  possession  and  inhabiting 
ye  places  wch  we  had  brought  at  noe  smal  expencees, 
when  those  sad  and  vnhappy  times  of  trouble  and  wars 
begun  in  England,  which  we  could  only  bewaile  with 
sighs  and  mounrfull  teares:  And  haue  euer  since  hid 
our  selues  behind  the  Mountains,  in  this  desolate 
desert,  as  a  people  forsaken,  choosing  rather  to  sit 
solitary  and  wait  only  vpon  the  Divine  Providence  for 
protection  than  to  apply  ourselues  to  any  of  those  many 
changes  of  powers,  or  hearts  as  wel  as  or  station  stil 
remaining  free  from  illegale  ingagements  and  intire  to 
yor  Maties  interests,  euen  now  at  ye  returne  of  or 
Lord  ye  King  to  his  Crowne  and  dignities." 

The  Court  also,  in  order  to  give  this  petition 
greater  weight,  appointed  a  committee  on  which 


208  Wadsworth 

the  Governor  was  associated  with  Deputy  Gov- 
ernor Mason,  Mr.  Wyllys,  Mr.  Allyn,  Mr.  Ware- 
ham,  Mr.  Stone,  Mr.  Hooker,  Mr.  Whiting  and 
Daniel  Clark,  Secretary  of  the  colony,  to  still 
further  perefct  and  amend  it.  In  their  petition 
they  said : 

"And  whereas,  besides  the  great  charge  that  hath 
been  expended  by  our  fathers,  and  some  of  their  as- 
sociates yet  surviving,  about  the  purchases,  building, 
fortifying,  and  other  matters,  of  culturing  and  improv- 
ing to  a  condition  of  safety  and  subsistence,  in  the 
places  of  our  present  abode,  among  the  heathen,  where- 
by there  is  a  considerable  and  real  addition  to  the 
honour  and  enlargement  of  his  majesty's  dominion,  by 
the  sole  disbursements  of  his  majesty's  subjects  here; 
of  their  own  proper  estates,  they  have  laid  out  a  very 
great  sum  for  the  purchasing  a  jurisdiction  right  of 
Mr.  George  Fenwick,  which  they  were  given  to  under- 
stand was  derived  from  true  royal  authority,  by  letters 
patent,  to  certain  lords  and  gentlemen  therein  nomi- 
nated, a  copy  whereof  was  produced  before  the  com- 
missioners of  the  colonies,  and  approved  by  them,  as 
appears  by  their  records,  a  copy  where  of  is  ready  to 
be  presented  at  your  majesty's  command,  though, 
either  by  fire  at  a  house  where  it  had  been  sometimes 
kept,  or  some  other  accident,  is  now  lost;  with  which 
your  poor  subjects  are  rather  willing  to  have  con- 
tented themselves,  in  those  afflicting  times,  than  to 
seek  for  power  or  privileges  from  any  other  than  their 
lawful  prince  and  sovereign." 

This  petition  bears  the  date  of  June  7,  1661, 
and  was  signed  by  Daniel  Clarke,  secretary,  by 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         209 

order  of  the  General  Court  of  the  Colony  of  Con- 
necticut in  New  England.  In  addition  to  this 
the  Governor  was  given  letters  signed  by  the 
Secretary  of  the  colony  addressed  to  Lord  Say 
and  Seal  and  the  Earl  of  Manchester.  In  the 
communication  to  the  latter  the  colony  solicited 
his  counsel  and  advice  respecting  the  monies  paid 
to  George  Fenwick  for  jurisdiction  and  power 
and  obtaining  a  patent  for  the  colony.  It  also 
stated  that: 

"the  great  disappointment  yt  we  meet  with  about  an 
Agreemt  yt  was  made  by  this  Colony  with  ye  fore- 
mentioned  Mr.  Fenwick  doth  necessitate  vs  therevnto. 
We  disbursed  a  considerable  sum  of  estate,  to  ye  value 
of  1600  L.,  vnto  Mr.  Fenwick.  We  willingly  disbursed 
the  sum  forementioned;  wch  tho'  it  hath  much  op- 
pressed vs,  ye  could  we  but  haue  enjoyed  what  he  ex- 
pected, it  would  haue  satisfied;  but  now  we  see  orselues 
as  naked  as  before,  haueing  neither  Pattent  or  Coppy 
of  it,  not  ought  elce  yt  may  ensure  vs  of  future  con- 
tinuance of  or  present  privilidges.  And  therefore  are 
necessitated  from  several  other  respects  to  lay  out 
orselues,  and  to  improve  all  the  interests  yt  we  can 
raise  in  or  natiue  soyle,  for  obtaineing  reliefe  in  this 
or  state  and  condition,  wh  humane  frailty  hath  in  a 
great  measure  cast  vs  into.  Had  we  not  bene  too 
credulous  and  confident  of  ye  goodness  and  faithful- 
nes  of  that  Gent:  we  might  possibly  haue  bin  at  a  better 
pass." 

In  the  letter  to  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  who  was 
at  the  time  the  sole  survivor  of  the  Warwick 


210  Wadswortii 

patentees,  the  following  reference  was  made  to 
the  agreement  with  Fenwick : 

"Mr.  George  Fenwick  took  possession  of  Saybrook 
Fort,  there  resideing  for  certain  or  severall  years;  at 
length  he  was  moved  for  ends  best  known  to  himself  to 
returne  to  England,  and  thereupon  propounded  by  him- 
self, or  agent,  the  sale  of  the.  Fort,  with  the  Housing 
there,  and  several  appertenances,  together  with  all  the 
Lands  on  the  River,  and  so  to  the  Narragansett 
Bay,  with  jurisdiction  power  to  this  Colony, 
which  was  exceedingly  opposed  by  severall 
amongst  us,  whom  some  of  us  have  heard  to 
affirm  that  such  a  thing  would  be  very  dis- 
tastfull  to  your  Honour,  with  the  rest  of  the  noble 
Pattentees,  who  had  very  boutifull  intentions  to  this 
Colony  nevertheless,  tho  there  was  a  stopp  for  the 
present,  yett  in  some  short  time,  the  business  of  pur- 
chase was  revived  by  Mr.  Fenwick,  and  expressions 
to  this  purpose  given  out  by  him  or  his  agents,  or 
both,  that  he  had  power  to  dispose  of  the  premises, 
the  rest  of  the  Pattentees  deserting,  it  fell  into  his 
hands  by  agreement;  and  in  case  the  Towns  on  the 
River,  refused  to  comply  with  such  terms  as  he  pro- 
posed for  the  purchasing  of  the  said  Fort.  &c.,  itt  was 
frequently  reported  that  he  proposed  either  to  impose 
customes  on  the  River,  or  make  sale  thereof  to  the 
Dutch,  our  noxious  nighbours,  at  last  for  our  peace 
and  settlement  and  security  (as  we  hoped)  we  made 
by  our  Committee,  an  agreement  with  the  said  Mr. 
Fenwick,  a  coppie  whereof  is  ready  to  be  presented 
unto  your  Honnour,  which  cost  this  River,  one  thousand 
six  hundred  pounds  or  thereabouts,  wherein  your 
Honnour  may  see  the  great  abuse  that  we  received  at 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         211 

Mr.  Fenwick's  hand,  receiving  a  vast  sum  from  a  poor 
people,  and  we  scarcely  att  all  advantaged  thereby; 
may  we  judge  our  condition  worse  then  if  we  had  con- 
tented ourselves  with  the  patronage  of  the  grand  Pat- 
tentees,  for  we  have  not  so  much  as  a  coppy  of  a 
Pattent  to  secure  our  standing  as  a  commonwealth,  nor 
to  ensure  us  for  the  continuance  of  our  rights  and 
priviledges  and  immunities,  which  we  thought  the  juris- 
diction power  and  authority  which  Mr.  Fenwick  had 
engaged  to  us,  and  we  paid  for  at  a  dear  rate,  nor  any 
thing  under  his  hand  to  engage  him  and  his  heirs,  to 
the  performance  of  that  which  was  aimed  at  and  in- 
tended in  our  purchase,  the  lands  up  the  River  for  a 
long  tract,  the  Massachusetts  Colony  doth  challenge, 
and  have  run  the  line,  which  as  they  say,  falls  into 
one  of  our  Towns;  on  the  other  side  towards  Narra- 
gansett,  we  know  not  how  to  claime,  being  destitute  of 
Pattent  and  a  coppie  to  decide  the  bounds."1 

1  The  statements  made  in  the  appeal,  petition  and  let- 
ters quoted  are  admirable  examples  of  the  equivocating 
diplomacy  which  earned  for  Connecticut,  the  sobriquet 
of  the  Nutmeg  State  as  related  by  Judge  Haliburton 
in  his  satirical  articles  which  appeared  in  1835  and 
were  republished  in  book  form  in  1837  under  the  title 
of  "The  Clockmaker  or  the  Sayings  and  Doings  of  Sam 
Slick  of  Slickville,"  and  which  created  a  feeling  of 
distrust  in  the  councils  of  the  sister  colonies,  the  most 
glaring  out-cropping  of  which  appeared  in  the  will  of 
Lewis  Morris  of  Morrisania,  N.  Y.,  who  wrote,  in 
1762: 

"It  is  my  desire  that  my  sone,  Gouverneur  Morris, 
may  have  the  best  education  that  is  to  be  had  in  Eur- 
ope or  America,  but  my  express  will  and  directions 
are  that  he  never  be  sent  for  that  purpose  to  the 
Colony  of  Connecticut  lest  he.  should  imbibe  in  his 
youth  that  low  craft  and  cunning  so  incident  to  the 
people  of  that  country  which  is  so  interwoven  in  their 


212  Wadsworth 

The  draft  of  instructions  to  the  Governor  re- 
quested that  the  following  be  made  patentees: 
"the  present  Gouevnour,  Dep.  Gouevnour,  Mr. 
Henry  Clark,  Mr.  Samll  Willis,  Mr.  Mathew 
Allyn,  Mr.  Richard  Treat,  Mr.  William  Phelps, 
Nathan  Gold,  together  with  their  associates  here- 
after named,  Mrs.  John  Warham,  Samll  Stone, 
John  Whiting,  Samll  Hooker,  James  Fitch,  Rich 
Lord,  Henry  Woolcot,  John  Steele,  Edw.  Stebbin, 
John  Talcot,  Benjamin  Nubery,  Danll  Clarkw, 
Mathew  Campfield,  Willm  Wadsworth,  John 
Hawley,  John  Allyn.  Before  his  departure,  how- 
ever, this  list  was  changed  to  read  as  follows: 
'John  Winthrop,  Esqr,  and  Maior  John  Mason, 
Esqr,  Samll  Willis,  Henry  Clark,  Math  Allyn, 
William  Phelps,  Richard  Treat,  Nathan  Gold, 
John  Talcot,  Daniell  Clark,  John  Deming  Senr, 
Anthony  Howkins,  Robert  Warner,  John  Clark 
Senr,  Robert  Royce,  Phillip  Groues,  Jehu  Burr, 
Mathew  Campfield,'1  my  father  being  placed  on  a 

constitutions  that  all  their  art  cannot  disguise  it  from 
the  world,  though  many  of  them  under  the  sanctified 
garb  of  religion  have  endeavored  to  impose  themselves 
on  the  world  for  honest  men." 

At  the  time  these  letters  were  written  the  members 
of  the  General  Court  knew  that  Fenwick  had  not  sold 
a  jurisdiction  right,  but  only  made  a  promise  if  it  came 
in  his  power,  while  the  same  Court  in  1660  exacted 
500  pounds  from  his  sister  Elizabeth  before  it  would 
release  his  estate. 

1  By  comparing  the  above  with  the  Charter  on  page 
216  it  will  be  found  that  still  other  changes  were  made 
in  the  list  of  patentees. 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         213 

Committee  with  Captain  Lord,  Henry  Woolcot, 
John  Allyn,  and  Mathew  Allyn  to  order  and  dis- 
pose of  the  'pay'1  that  was  to  come  to  the  colony 
from  Captain  Cullick  so  as  to  meet  the  bills 
charged  to  the  colony  by  the  Governor  while  in 
pursuance  of  the  patent  in  England. 

In  addition  to  the  foregoing  Governor  Win- 
throp  also  carried  with  him  to  London  the  Indian 
deed2  which  Sequassen  gave  the  founders  of  the 
colony  under  the  Wyllys  oak  and  a  copy  of  John 

1  "Pay"  was  barter,  property  at  the  prices  which  the 
General  Court  had  affixed  to  it  in  acceptances  for  taxes 
for  the  year.  "Money"  was  metallic  currency  or  wam- 
pum for  the  token  money.  "Pay  or  Money"  was 
property  at  rates  fixed  by  the  parties,  not  by  the  Gen- 
eral Court.  "Trust"  was  a  price  with  time  given.  Pay- 
ment "in  Specie"  meant  payment  in  articles  specified  by 
the  agreement  or,  in  default  of  that,  in  articles  at  rates 
specified  by  the  General  Court's  acts. — Johnson's  Con- 
necticut. 

*The  following  reference  to  this  Indian  deed  has 
been  found  in  a  decision  rendered  in  1754  by  Roger 
Wolcott,  then  County  Court  Judge,  in  the  case  Sam- 
uel Flagg  vs.  John  Ledger  and  Wm.  Hooker:  "The 
Indian  deed  of  July  5,  1670,  is  of  the  same  guise.  We 
never  look  upon  things  well  until  we  consider  the  time 
and  circumstances  that  attend  them.  There  was  now 
no  need  of  the  purchase.  The  deed  of  itself  declares 
the  land  was  purchased  in  1636,  but  that  the  deed  was 
out  of  the  way — no  wonder  such  management  and 
design — and  that  it  had  been  laid  before  the  King  with 
other  purchases  of  1662  and  by  him  found  sufficient  as 
purchased  lands  to  invest  him  with  a  good  title  to  it 
which  title  he  had  granted  to  the  corporation  in  1662." 
Roger  Wolcott  was  Deputy  Governor  of  Connecticut 
from  1742  to  1750  and  Governor  from  1751  to  1753. 


214  Wadsworth 

Mason's  narrative  of  the  Pequot  war  that  gave 
Connecticut  a  claim  to  their  lands  by  right  of 
conquest. 

Having  decided  to  take  ship  from  New  Amster- 
dam (New  York)  the  Governor  left  Hartford 
early  in  July,  stopping  on  the  way  at  Guilford, 
New  Haven  and  Milford  to  confer  with  a  few 
of  the  leaders  in  the  New  Haven  Colony,  a  num- 
ber of  whom  were  not  in  accord  with  the  Daven- 
port system  of  government.  As  to  the  under- 
standing arrived  at,  nothing  has  ever  been  said, 
but  it  was  at  a  later  date  generally  understood 
that  William  Leete,  of  Guilford,  who  was  at 
the  time  the  Governor  of  New  Haven,  was  in 
favor  of  having  the  charter  cover  both  of  the 
colonies,  as  New  Haven's  tardiness  in  declar- 
ing its  allegiance  to  the  King,  as  well  as  the 
part  its  leading  men,  Leete  being  of  the  number, 
had  taken  in  giving  comfort  and  shelter  to  the 
Regicides,  Whalley  and  Goffe,  would  at  least 
during  Charles'  reign,  stand  in  the  way  of  procur- 
ing a  charter,  while  they  were,  should  the  planta- 
tion remain  without  one,  apt  to  be  joined  to  one  of 
the  other  colonies. 

Governor  Winthrop  sailed  from  New  Amster- 
dam July  23,  I66I,1  in  the  De  Trouw  and  noth- 

'The  following  item  appears  in  the  New  Amsterdam 
book  of  Monthly  Payments:  "July  18,  1660,  27  Ib. 
Powder  to  salute  Gov.  Winthrop  coming  here  from  the 
Fresh  River  to  proceed  in  the  Trou  to  Fatherland." 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         215 

ing  more  was  heard  of  him  or  his  mission  until 
the  following  summer,  when  Henry  Wolcott  re- 
turned with  a  letter  dated  May  13,  in  which  the 
Governor  said  that  the  charter  for  the  colony 
had  passed  the  great  seal  *  and  that  it  was  "as 
full  and  large  for  bounds  and  privileges  as  could 
be  desired."  At  the  same  time  he  also  advised 
John  Talcott,  the  Treasurer  of  the  Colony,  that 
he  had  agreed  with  three  London  merchants,2 
who  had  supplied  him  with  money  to  meet  the 
necessary  expenses  in  procuring  the  charter,  to 
be  paid  the  same  in  wheat  and  pease  delivered  in 
New  London. 

The  Charter  followed  in  due  season  and,  after 
being  shown  to  the  commissioners  of  the  New 
England  colonies  when  they  met  at  Boston  Sep- 
tember 4,  i662,3  was  publicly  read  to  the  freemen 

1  The  Charter  bears  date  April  23,  1662.  It  passed  the 
great  seal  May  10,  1662. 

*The  merchants  were  Edward  Cowes,  Giles  Silvester 
and  William  Maskeline.  They  advanced  500  pounds  on 
the  Colony's  letter  of  credit,  accepting  a  bill  drawn  on 
the  Treasurer  for  "Two  Thousand  Bushels,  Winchester 
Measure,  of  good  and  well  conditioned  wheat,  at  three 
shillings  and  six  pence  p  bushell,  and  Twelve  hundred 
Bushells  of  pease,  at  two  shillings  and  six  pence  p 
bushell,  all  which  amount  to  Five  hundred  pounds 
sterling."  This  grain  was  delivered  to  Philip  Best  and 
Edward  Paule  aboard  the  John  and  Robert,  December 
I,  1662. 

*  Simon  Bradstreet  and  John  Norton  brought  the 
charter  from  London  to  Boston  and  gave  it  to  Samuel 
Wyllys  and  John  Talcott,  the  Connecticut  representa- 
tives at  the  above  meeting. 


216  Wadsworth 

of  Connecticut  in  Hartford  on  October  4,  1662, 
when  it  was  declared  to  belong  to  them  and  their 
descendants  forever.  The  following  is  a  copy 
of  it: 

Charles  the  second,  by  the  grace  of  GOD,  King  of 
England,  Scotland,  France  and  Ireland,  Defender  of 
the  Faith,  &c.  To  all  to  whom  these  presents  shall 
come,  GREETING. 

Whereas  by  the  several  navigations,  discoveries  and 
successful  plantations  of  divers  of  our  loving  subjects 
of  this  our  realm  of  England,  several  lands,  islands, 
places,  colonies  and  plantations  have  been  obtained  and 
settled  in  that  part  of  the  continent  of  America,  called 
New  England,  and  thereby  the  trade  and  commerce 
there,  hath  been  of  late  years,  much  increased:  And 
whereas  we  have  been  informed  by  the  humble  petition 
of  our  trusty  and  well  beloved  John  Winthrop,  John 
Mason,  Samuel  Wyllys,  Henry  Clarke,  Matthew  Allyn, 
John  Tapping,  Nathan  Gold,  Richard  Treat,  Richard 
Lord,  Henry  Wolcott,  John  Talcott,  Daniel  Clarke, 
John  Ogden,  Thomas  Wells,  Obadiah  Bruen,  John 
Clarke,  Anthony  Hawkins,  John  Deming  and  Matthew 
Camfield,  being  persons  principally  interested  in  our 
colony  or  plantation  of  Connecticut,  in  New  England, 
that  the  same  colony,  or  the  greatest  part  thereof  was 
purchased  and  obtained  for  great  and  valuable  consid- 
erations, and  some  other  part  thereof  gained  by  con- 
quest, and  with  much  difficulty,  and  at  the  only  en- 
deavours, expence,  and  charges  of  them  and  their  as- 
sociates, and  those  under  whom  they  claim,  subdued 
and  improved,  and  thereby  become  a  considerable  en- 
largement and  addition  of  our  dominions  and  interest 
there. 


>f 


CHARLES    II 
(From   the  Charter) 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         219 

NOW  KNOW  YE,  That  in  consideration  thereof, 
and  in  regard,  the  said  colony  is  remote  from  other  the 
English  plantations  in  the  places  aforesaid,  and  to  the 
end  the  affairs  and  business  which  shall  from  time  to 
time  happen  to  arise  concerning  the  same,  may  be  duly 
ordered  and  managed,  we  have  thought  fit,  and  at  the 
humble  petition  of  the  persons  aforesaid,  and  are  gra- 
ciously pleased  to  create  and  make  them  a  body  politic 
and  corporate,  with  the  powers  and  privileges  herein 
after  mentioned;  and  accordingly  our  will  and  pleasure 
is,  and  of  our  special  grace,  certain  knowledge,  and 
mere  notion,  we  have  ordained,  constituted  and  de- 
clared, and  by  these  presents,  for  us,  our  heirs  and 
successors,  do  ordain,  constitute  and  declare,  that  they 
the  said  John  Winthrop,  John  Mason,  Samuel  Wyllys, 
Henry  Clarke,  Matthew  Allyn,  John  Tapping,  Nathan 
Gold,  Richard  Treat,  Richard  Lord,  Henry  Wolcott, 
John  Talcott,  Daniel  Clarke,  John  Ogden,  Thomas 
Wells,  Obadiah  Bruen,  John  Clarke,  Anthony  Hawkins, 
John  Deming,  and  Matthew  Camfield,  and  all  such 
others  as  now  are,  or  hereafter  shall  be  admitted  and 
made  free  of  the  company  and  society  of  our  colony  of 
Connecticut,  in  America,  shall  from  time  to  time,  and 
for  ever  hereafter,  be  one  body  corporate  and  politic, 
in  fact  and  name,  by  the  name  of  Governour  and  com- 
pany of  the  English  colony  of  Connecticut  in  New 
England,  in  America;  and  that  by  the  same  name,  they 
and  their  successors  shall  and  may  have  perpetual  suc- 
cession, and  shall  and  may  be  persons  able  and  capable 
in  the  law,  to  plead  and  be  impleaded,  to  answer  and 
to  be  answered  unto,  to  defend  and  be  defended  in  all 
and  singular  suits,  causes,  quarrels,  matters,  actions 
and  things,  of  what  kind  or  nature  soever;  and  also  to 
have,  take,  possess,  acquire,  and  purchase  lands,  tene- 


220  Wadsworth 

ments,  or  hereditaments,  or  any  goods,  or  chattels,  and 
the  same  to  lease,  grant,  demise,  alien,  bargain,  sell, 
and  dispose  of,  as  other  our  liege  people  of  this  our 
realm  of  England,  or  any  other  corporation  or  body 
politic  within  the  same  may  lawfully  do. 

And  further,  That  the  said  Gouvernour  and  company, 
and  their  successors,  shall  and  may  for  ever  hereafter 
have  a  common  seal,  to  serve  and  use  for  all  causes, 
matters,  things,  and  affairs  whatsoever,  of  them  and 
their  successors,  and  the  same  seal,  to  alter,  change, 
break,  and  make  new  from  time  to  time,  at  their  wills 
and  pleasures,  as  they  shall  think  fit. 

And  further,  We  will  and  ordain,  and  by  these  pres- 
ents, for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  do  declare  and 
appoint,  That  for  the  better  ordering  and  managing  of 
the  affairs  and  business  of  the  said  company  and  their 
successors,  there  shall  be  one  Gouvernour,  one  Deputy- 
Gouvernour,  and  twelve  Assistants,  to  be  from  time  to 
time  constituted,  elected  and  chosen  out  of  the  freemen 
of  the  said  company  for  the  time  being,  in  such  manner 
and  form  as  hereafter  in  these  presents  is  expressed, 
which  said  officers  shall  apply  themselves  to  take  care 
for  the  best  disposing  and  ordering  of  the  general  busi- 
ness and  affairs  of  and  concerning  the  land  and  heredi- 
taments herein  after  mentioned  to  be  granted,  and  the 
plantation  thereof,  and  the  government  of  the  people 
thereof:  And  for  the  better  execution  of  our  royal 
pleasure  herein,  we  do  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors, 
assign,  name,  constitute  and  appoint  the  aforesaid  John 
Winthrop  to  be  the  first  and  present  Gouvernour  of  the 
said  company,  and  the  said  John  Mason,  to  be  the 
Deputy-Gouvernour,  and  the  said  Samuel  Wyllys, 
Matthew  Allyn,  Nathan  Gold,  Henry  Clarke,  Richard 
Treat,  John  Ogden,  John  Tapping,  John  Talcott, 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         221 

Thomas  Wells,  Henry  Wolcott,  Richard  Lord  and  Dan- 
iel Clarke,  to  be  the  twelve  present  Assistants  of  the 
said  company,  to  continue  in  the  said  several  offices 
respectively,  until  the  second  Thursday,  which  shall  be 
in  the  month  of  October  now  next  coming. 

And  further,  We  will,  and  by  these  presents  for  us, 
our  heirs,  and  successors,  do  ordain  and  grant,  That 
the  Gouvernour  of  the  said  company  for  the  time  be- 
ing, or  in  his  absence  by  occasion  of  sickness,  or  other- 
wise by  his  leave  or  permission,  the  Deputy-Gouver- 
nour  for  the  time  being,  shall  and  may  from  time  to 
time  upon  all  occasions,  give  orders  for  the  assembling 
of  the  said  company,  and  calling  them  together  to  con- 
sult and  advise  of  the  business  and  affairs  of  the  said 
company,  and  that  for  ever  hereafter,  twice  in  every 
year,  That  is  to  say,  on  every  second  Thursday  in  Octo- 
ber, and  on  ever  2d  Thursday  in  May,  or  oftener  in  case 
it  shall  be  requisite;  the  assistants,  and  freemen  of  the 
said  company,  or  such  of  them  (not  exceeding  two  per- 
sons from  each  place,  town  or  city)  who  shall  be  from 
time  to  time  thereunto  elected  or  deputed  by  the  major 
part  of  the  freemen  of  the  respective  towns,  cities,  and 
places  for  which  they  shall  be  elected  or  deputed,  shall 
have  a  general  meeting,  or  assembly,  then  and  there  to 
consult  and  advise  in  and  about  the  affairs  and  busi- 
ness of  the  said  company:  and  that  the  Gouvernour,  or 
in  his  absence  the  Deputy-Gouvernour  of  the  said 
company  for  the  time  being,  and  such  of  the  assistants 
and  freemen  of  the  said  company  as  shall  be  so  elected 
or  deputed,  and  be  present  at  such  meeting  or  as- 
sembly, or  the  greatest  number  of  them,  whereof  the 
Gouvernour  or  Deputy-Gouvernour,  and  six  of  the  as- 
sistants, at  least  to  be  seven,  shall  be  called  the  general 
assembly,  and  shall  have  full  power  and  authority  to 


222  Wadsworth 

alter  and  change  their  days  and  times  of  meeting,  or 
general  assemblies,  for  electing  the  gouvernour,  deputy- 
gouvernour,  and  assistants,  or  other  officers,  or  any 
other  courts,  assemblies  or  meetings,  and  to  choose, 
nominate  and  appoint  such  and  so  many  others  persons 
as  they  shall  think  fit,  and  shall  be  willing  to  accept 
the  same,  to  be  free  of  the  said  company,  and  body 
politic,  and  them  into  the  same  to  admit;  and  to  elect 
and  constitute  such  officers  as  they  shall  think  fit  and 
requisite  for  the  ordering,  managing  and  disposing  of 
the  affairs  of  the  said  gouvernour  and  company  and 
their  successors. 

And  we  do  hereby  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors, 
establish  and  ordain,  That  once  in  a  year  for  ever  here- 
after, namely,  the  second  Thursday  of  May,  the  gouver- 
nour, deputy-gouvernour,  and  assistants  of  the  said 
company,  and  other  officers  of  the  said  company,  or 
such  of  them  as  the  said  general  assembly  shall  think 
fit,  shall  be  in  the  said  general  court  and  assembly  to 
be  held  from  that  day  or  time,  newly  chosen  for  the 
year  ensuing,  by  such  greater  part  of  the  said  com- 
pany for  the  time  being,  then  and  there  present;  and  if 
the  gouvernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  and  assistants  by 
these  presents  appointed,  or  such  as  hereafter  be  newly 
chosen  into  their  rooms,  or  any  of  them,  or  any  other 
of  the  officers  to  be  appointed  for  the  said  company 
shall  die,  or  be  removed  from  his  or  their  several  of- 
fices or  places  before  said  general  day  of  election,  whom 
we  do  hereby  declare  for  any  misdemeanor  or  default, 
to  be  removable  by  the  gouvernour,  assistants,  and 
companv.  or  such  greater  part  of  them  in  any  of  the 
said  public  courts  to  be  assembled,  as  is  aforesaid, 
that  then  and  in  every  case,  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful 
to  and  for  the  gouvernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  and  as- 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         223 

sistants,  and  company  aforesaid,  or  such  greater  part 
of  them  to  be  assembled,  as  is  aforesaid,  in  any  of  their 
assemblies,  to  proceed  to  a  new  election  of  one  or 
more  of  their  company,  in  the  room  or  place,  rooms 
or  places  of  such  gouvernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  as- 
sistant, or  other  officer  or  officers  so  dying  or  removed, 
according  to  their  discretions,  and  immediately  upon 
and  after  such  election  or  elections  made  of  such  Gouv- 
ernour, deputy-gouvernour,  assistant  or  assistants,  or 
any  other  officer  of  the  said  company,  in  manner  and 
form  aforesaid,  the  authority,  office  and  power  before 
given  to  the  former  gouvernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  or 
other  officer  or  officers  so  removed,  in  whose  stead  and 
place  new  shall  be  chosen,  shall  as  to  him  and  them, 
and  every  of  them  respectively  cease  and  determine. 

Provided  also,  And  our  will  and  pleasure  is,  That  as 
well  such  as  are  by  these  presents  appointed  to  be  the 
present  gouvernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  and  assistants 
of  the  said  company,  as  those  that  shall  succeed  them, 
and  all  other  officers  to  be  appointed  and  chosen,  as 
aforesaid,  shall,  before  they  undertake  the  execution  of 
their  said  offices  and  places  respectively,  take  their 
several  and  respective  corporal  oaths  for  the  due  and 
faithful  performance  of  their  duties  in  their  several  of- 
fices and  places,  before  such  person  or  persons  as  are 
by  these  presents  hereafter  appointed  to  take  and  re- 
ceive the  same;  That  is  to  say,  That  the  said  John 
Winthrop,  who  is  herein  before  nominated  and  ap- 
pointed the  present  gouvernour  of  the  said  company, 
shall  take  the  said  oath  before  one  or  more  of  the  mas- 
ters of  our  court  of  chancery  for  the  time  being,  unto 
which  master  of  chancery,  we  do  by  these  presents  give 
full  power  and  authority  to  administer  the  said  oath  to 
the  said  John  Winthrop  accordingly:  and  the  said  John 


224  Wadsworih 

Mason,  who  is  herein  before  nominated  and  appointed 
the  present  deputy-gouvernour  of  the  said  company, 
shall  take  the  said  oath  before  the  said  John  Winthrop, 
or  any  two  of  the  assistants  of  the  said  company,  unto 
whom  we  do  by  these  presents  give  full  power  and  au- 
thority to  administer  the  said  oath  to  the  said  John 
Mason  accordingly:  and  the  said  Samuel  Wyllys,  Henry 
Clarke,  Matthew  Allyn,  John  Tapping,  Nathan  Gold, 
Richard  Treat,  Richard  Lord,  Henry  Wolcott,  John 
Talcott,  Daniel  Clarke,  John  Ogden,  and  Thomas 
Wells,  who  are  herein  before  nominated  and  appointed 
the  present  assistants  of  the  said  company,  shall  take 
the  oath  before  the  said  John  Winthrop,  and  John 
Mason,  or  one  of  them,  to  whom  we  do  hereby  give 
full  power  and  authority  to  administer  the  same  accord- 
ingly. And  our  further  will  and  pleasure  is,  That  all 
and  every  gouvernour,  or  deputy-gouvernour  to  be 
elected  and  chosen  by  virtue  of  these  presents,  shall 
take  the  said  oath  before  two  or  more  of  the  assistants 
of  the  said  company  for  the  time  being,  unto  whom  we 
do  by  these  presents  give  full  power  and  authority  to 
give  and  administer  the  said  oath  accordingly;  and  the 
said  assistants,  and  every  of  them,  and  all  and  every 
other  officer  or  officers  to  be  hereafter  chosen  from 
time  to  time,  to  take  the  said  oath  before  the  gouver- 
nour, or  deputy-gouvernour  for  the  time  being,  unto 
which  gouvernour  or  deputy-gouvernour,  we  do  by 
these  presents  give  full  power  and  authority  to  admin- 
ister the  same  accordingly. 

And  further.  Of  our  more  ample  grace,  certain  knowl- 
edge, and  mere  notion,  we  have  given  and  granted,  and 
by  these  presents  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  do 
give  and  grant  unto  the  said  gouvernour  and  company 
of  the  English  colony  of  Connecticut,  in  New  England, 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         225 

in  America,  and  to  every  inhabitant  there,  and  to  every 
person  or  persons  trading  thither,  and  to  every  such 
person  and  persons  as  are  or  shall  be  free  of  the  said 
colony,  full  power  and  authority  from  time  to  time,  and 
at  all  times  hereafter,  to  take  ship,  transport  and  carry 
away  for  and  towards  the  plantation  and  defence  of 
the  said  colony,  such  of  our  loving  subjects  and  strang- 
ers, as  shall  or  will  willingly  accompany  them  in,  and 
to  their  said  colony  and  plantation,  except  such  per- 
son and  persons,  as  are  or  shall  be  therein  restrained 
by  us,  our  heirs  and  successors;  and  also  to  ship  and 
transport  all,  and  all  manner  of  goods,  chattels,  mer- 
chandizes, and  other  things  whatsoever  that  are  or 
shall  be  useful  or  necessary  for  the  inhabitants  of  the 
said  colony,  and  may  lawfully  be  transported  thither: 
Nevertheless,  not  to  be  discharged  of  payment  to  us, 
our  heirs  and  successors,  of  the  duties,  customs  and 
subsidies  which  are  or  ought  to  be  paid  or  payable  for 
the  same. 

And  further,  Our  will  and  pleasure  is,  and  we  do 
for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  ordain,  declare,  and 
grant  unto  the  said  gouvernour  and  company,  and  their 
successors,  that  all,  and  every  subjects  of  us,  our  heirs, 
or  successors,  which  shall  go  to  inhabit  within  the 
said  colony,  and  every  of  their  children,  which  shall 
happen  to  be  born  there,  or  on  the  seas  in  going  thith- 
er, or  returning  from  thence,  shall  have  and  enjoy  all 
liberties  and  immunities  of  free  and  natural  subjects 
within  any  of  the  dominions  of  us,  our  heirs  or  suc- 
cessors, to  all  intents,  constructions  and  purposed 
whatsoever,  as  if  they  and  every  of  them  were  born 
within  the  realm  of  England;  and  we  do  authorize  and 
impower  the  gouvernour,  or  in  his  absence  the  dep- 
uty-gouvernour  for  the  time  being,  to  appoint  two  or 


226  Wadsworih 

more  of  the  said  assistants  at  any  of  their  courts  or 
assemblies  to  be  held  as  aforesaid,  to  have  power  and 
authority  to  administer  the  oath  of  supremacy  and 
obedience  to  all  and  every  person  and  persons  which 
shall  at  any  time  or  times  hereafter  go  or  pass  into 
the  said  colony  of  Connecticut,  unto  which  said  as- 
sistants so  to  be  appointed  as  aforesaid,  we  do  by  these 
presents  give  full  power  and  authority  to  administer 
the  said  oath  accordingly. 

And  we  do  further,  of  our  special  grace,  certain 
knowledge,  and  mere  motion,  give  and  grant  unto  the 
said  gouvernour  and  company  of  the  English  colony 
of  Connecticut,  in  New  England,  in  America,  and  their 
successors,  that  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  to  and  for 
the  gouvernour,  or  deputy-gouvernour,  and  such  of 
the  assistants  of  the  said  company  for  the  time  being 
as  shall  be  assembled  in  any  of  the  general  courts 
aforesaid,  or  in  any  courts  to  be  especially  summoned 
or  assembled  for  that  purpose,  or  the  greater  part  of 
them,  whereof  the  governour,  or  deputy-gouvernour, 
and  six  of  the  assistants  to  be  always  seven,  to  erect 
and  make  such  judicatories,  for  the  hearing  and  de- 
termining of  all  actions,  causes,  matters  and  things 
happening  within  the  said  colony  or  plantation,  and 
which  shall  be  in  dispute,  and  depending  there,  as  they 
shall  think  fit,  and  convenient,  and  also  from  time  to 
time  to  make,  ordain,  and  establish  all  manner  of 
wholesome,  and  reasonable  laws,  statutes,  ordinances, 
directions  and  instructions,  not  contrary  to  the  laws 
of  this  realm  of  England,  as  well  for  settling  the  forms 
and  ceremonies  of  government,  and  magistracy,  fit 
and  necessary  for  the  said  plantation,  and  the  inhabi- 
tants there,  as  for  naming  and  stiling  all  sorts  of  offi- 
cers, both  superior  and  inferior,  which  they  shall  find 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         227 

needful  for  the  government  and  plantation  of  the  said 
colony,  and  the  distinguishing  and  setting  forth  of  the 
several  duties,  powers  and  limits  of  every  such  office 
and  place,  and  the  forms  of  such  oaths  not  being  con- 
trary to  the  laws  and  statutes  of  this  our  realm  of  Eng- 
land, to  be  administered  for  the  execution  of  the  said 
severall  offices  and  places  as  also  for  the  disposing 
and  ordering  of  the  election  of  such  of  the  said  offi- 
cers as  are  to  be  annually  chosen,  and  of  such  others 
as  shall  succeed  in  case  of  death  or  removal,  and  ad- 
ministering the  said  oath  to  the  new  elected  officers, 
and  granting  necessary  commissions,  and  for  imposi- 
tion of  lawful  fines,  mulcts,  imprisonment  or  other 
punishment  upon  offenders  and  delinquents  according 
to  the  course  of  other  corporations  within  this  our 
kingdom  of  England,  and  the  same  laws,  fines,  mulcts, 
and  executions,  to  alter,  change,  revoke,  annul,  re- 
lease, or  pardon  under  their  common  seal,  as  by  the 
said  general  assembly,  or  the  major  part  of  them  shall 
be  thought  fit,  and  for  the  directing,  ruling  and  dispos- 
ing of  all  other  matters  and  things,  whereby  our  said 
people  inhabitants  there,  may  be  so  religiously,  peace- 
ably and  civilly  governed,  as  their  good  life  and  or- 
derly conversation  may  win  and  invite  the  natives  of 
the  country  to  the  knowledge  and  obedience  of  the 
only  true  God,  and  the  Saviour  of  mankind  and  the 
Christian  faith,  which  in  our  royal  intentions,  and  the 
adventurers  free  possession,  is  the  only  and  principal 
end  of  the  plantation;  willing,  commanding,  and  re- 
quiring, and  by  these  presents  for  us,  our  heirs  and 
successors,  ordaining  and  appointing,  that  all  such 
laws,  statutes,  and  ordinances,  instructions,  imposi- 
tions and  directions  as  shall  be  so  made  by  the  gouv- 
ernour,  deputy-gouvernour,  and  assistants  as  aforesaid, 


228  Wadsworth 

and  published  in  writing  under  their  common  seal, 
shall  carefully  and  duly  be  observed,  kept,  performed, 
and  put  in  execution,  according  to  the  true  intent  and 
meaning  of  the  same,  and  these  our  letters  patent,  or 
the  duplicate,  or  exemplification  thereof,  shall  be  to 
all  and  every  such  officers,  superiors  and  inferiors 
from  time  to  time,  for  the  putting  of  the  same  orders, 
laws,  statutes,  ordinances,  instructions  and  directions 
in  due  execution  against  us,  our  heirs  and  successors, 
a  sufficient  warrant  and  discharge. 

And  we  do  further  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors, 
give  and  grant  unto  the  said  gouvernour  and  com- 
pany, and  their  successors,  by  these  presents,  that  it 
shall  and  may  be  lawful  to,  and  for  the  chief  com- 
manders, gouvernours  and  officers  of  the  said  com- 
pany for  the  time  being,  who  shall  be  resident  in  the 
parts  of  New  England  hereafter  mentioned,  and  oth- 
ers inhabiting  there,  by  their  leave,  admittance,  ap- 
pointment, or  direction,  from  time  to  time,  and  at  all 
times  hereafter,  for  their  special  defence  and  safety,  to 
assemble,  martial-array,  and  put  in  war-like  posture 
the  inhabitants  of  the  said  colony,  and  to  commission- 
ate,  impower,  and  authorize  such  person  or  persons, 
as  they  shall  think  fit,  to  lead  and  conduct  the  said  in- 
habitants, and  to  encounter,  expulse,  repel  and  resist 
by  force  of  arms,  as  well  by  sea  as  by  land,  and 
also  to  kill,  slay,  and  destroy  by  all  fitting  ways,  enter- 
prizes,  and  means  whatsoever,  all  and  every  such  per- 
son or  persons  as  shall  at  any  time  hereafter  attempt 
or  enterprize  the  destruction,  invasion,  detriment,  or 
annoyance  of  the  said  inhabitants  or  plantation,  and  to 
use  and  exercise  the  law  martial  in  such  cases  only 
as  occasion  shall  require;  and  to  take  or  surprize  by 
all  ways  and  means  whatsoever,  all  and  every  such 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         229 

person  or  persons,  with  their  ships,  armour,  ammuni- 
tion and  other  goods  of  such  as  shall  in  such  hostile 
manner  invade  or  attempt  the  defeating  of  the  said 
plantation,  or  the  hurt  of  the  said  company  and  inhab- 
itants, and  upon  just  causes  to  invade  and  destroy  the 
natives,  or  other  enemies  of  the  said  colony. 

Nevertheless,  Our  will  and  pleasure  is,  and  we  do 
hereby  declare  unto  all  Christian  kings,  princes,  and 
states,  That  if  any  persons  which  shall  hereafter 
be  of  the  said  company  or  plantations,  or  any  other  by 
appointment  of  the  said  gouvernour  and  company  for 
the  time  being,  shall  at  any  time  or  times  hereafter 
rob  or  spoil  by  sea  or  by  land,  and  do  any  hurt,  vio- 
lence, or  unlawful  hostility  to  any  of  the  subjects  of 
us,  our  heirs  or  successors,  or  any  of  the  subjects  of 
any  prince  or  state  being  then  in  league  with  us,  our 
heirs  or  successors,  upon  complaint  of  such  injury  done 
to  any  such  prince  or  state,  or  their  subjects,  we,  our 
heirs  and  successors  will  make  open  proclamation  with- 
in any  parts  of  our  realm  of  England  fit  for  that  pur- 
pose, that  the  person  or  persons  committing  any  such 
robbery  or  spoil,  shall  within  the  time  limited  by  such 
proclamation,  make  full  restitution  or  satisfaction  of 
all  such  injuries  done  or  committed,  so  as  the  said 
prince,  or  others  so  complaining  may  be  fully  satisfied 
and  contented;  and  if  the  said  person  or  persons  who 
shall  commit  any  such  robbery  or  spoil  shall  not  make 
satisfaction  accordingly,  within  such  time  so  to  be 
limited,  that  then  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  us, 
our  heirs  and  successors,  to  put  such  person  or  persons 
out  of  our  allegiance  and  protection;  and  that  it  shall 
and  may  be  lawful  and  free  for  all  princes  or  others  to 
prosecute  with  hostility  such  offenders,  and  every  of 
them,  their,  and  every  of  their  precursors,  aiders,  abet- 
tors and  counsellors  in  that  behalf. 


230  Wadsworth 

Provided  also,  And  our  express  will  and  pleasure  is, 
and  we  do  by  these  presents  for  us,  our  heirs,  and 
successors,  ordain  and  appoint,  That  these  presents 
shall  not  in  any  manner  hinder  any  of  our  loving  sub- 
jects whatsoever  to  use  and  exercise  the  trade  of  fish- 
ing upon  the  coast  of  New  England,  in  America,  but 
they  and  every  or  any  of  them  shall  have  full  and  free 
power  and  liberty  to  continue,  and  use  the  said  trade 
of  fishing  upon  the  said  coast,  in  any  of  the  seas  there- 
unto adjoining,  or  any  arms  of  the  seas,  or  salt  water 
rivers  where  they  have  been  accustomed  to  fish,  and 
to  build  and  set  up  on  the  waste  land  belonging  to 
the  said  colony  of  Connecticut,  such  wharves,  stages, 
and  work-houses  as  shall  be  necessary  for  the  salting, 
drying  and  keeping  of  their  fish  to  be  taken,  or  gotten 
upon  that  coast,  anything  in  these  presents  contained 
to  the  contrary  notwishstanding. 

And  know  ye  further,  That  we,  of  our  abundant 
grace,  certain  knowledge,  and  mere  notion,  have  given, 
granted,  and  confirmed,  and  by  these  presents  for  us, 
our  heirs  and  successors,  do  give,  grant  and  confirm 
unto  the  said  gouvernour  and  company,  and  their  suc- 
cessors, all  that  part  of  our  dominions  in  New  Eng- 
land in  America,  bounded  on  the  east  by  the  Narra- 
ganset  River,  commonly  called  Narraganset  Bay,  where 
the  said  river  falleth  into  the  sea;  and  on  the  north  by 
the  line  of  the  Massachusetts  plantation;  and  on  the 
south  by  the  sea;  and  in  longitude  as  the  line  of  the 
Massachusetts  colony,  running  from  east  to  west,  that 
is  to  say,  from  the  said  Narraganset  Bay  on  the  east, 
to  the  south  sea  on  the  west  part,  with  the  islands 
thereunto  adjoining,  together  with  all  firm  lands,  soils, 
grounds,  havens,  ports,  rivers,  waters,  fishings,  mines, 
minerals,  precious  stones,  quarries,  and  all  and  sin- 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         231 

gular  other  commodities,  jurisdictions,  royalties, 
privileges,  franchises,  pre-eminences,  and  hereditaments 
whatsoever,  within  the  said  tract,  bounds,  lands,  and 
islands  aforesaid,  or  to  them  or  any  of  them  belong- 
ing. 

TO  HAVE  AND  TO  HOLD  the  same  unto  the 
said  gouvernour  and  company,  their  successors  and  as- 
signs for  ever,  upon  trust,  and  for  the  use  and  ben- 
efit of  themselves  and  their  associates,  freemen  of  the 
said  colony,  their  heirs  and  assigns,  to  be  holden  of 
us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  as  of  our  manor  of  East 
Greenwich,  in  free  and  common  soccage,  and  not  in 
capite,  nor  by  knights,  service,  yielding  and  paying 
therefore  to  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  only  the 
fifth  part  of  all  the  ore  of  gold  and  silver  which  from 
time  to  time,  and  at  all  times  hereafter,  shall  be  there 
gotten,  had,  or  obtained,  in  lieu  of  all  services,  duties 
and  demands  whatsoever,  to  be  to  us,  our  heirs,  or 
successors  therefore,  or  thereout  rendered,  made,  or 
paid. 

And  lastly,  We  do  for  us,  our  heirs  and  successors, 
grant  to  the  said  gouvernour  and  company,  and  their 
successors,  by  these  presents,  That  these  our  letters 
patents,  shall  be  firm,  good  and  effectual  in  the  law, 
to  all  intents,  constructions,  and  purposes  whatsoever, 
according  to  our  true  intent  and  meaning  herein  before 
declared,  as  shall  be  construed,  reputed  and  adjudged 
most  favorable  on  the  behalf,  and  for  the  best  benefit, 
and  behoof  of  the  said  gouvernour  and  company,  and 
their  successors,  although  express  mention  of  the  true 
yearly  value  or  certainty  of  the  premises,  or  any  of 
them,  or  of  any  other  gifts  or  grants  by  us,  or  by  any 
of  our  progenitors,  or  predecessors,  heretofore  made 
to  the  said  gouvernour  and  company  of  the  English 


232  Wadsworth 

colony  of  Connecticut,  in  New  England,  America, 
aforesaid,  in  these  presents  is  not  made,  or  any  statute, 
act,  ordinance,  provision,  proclamation,  or  restriction 
heretofore  had,  made,  enacted,  ordained,  or  provided, 
or  any  other  matter,  cause,  or  thing  whatsoever,  to  the 
contrary  thereof,  in  any  wise  notwithstanding. 

In  witness  whereof,  We  have  caused  these  our  let- 
ters to  be  made  patents.  Witness  ourself  at  West- 
minster, the  three  and  twentieth  day  of  April,  in  the 
fourteenth  year  of  our  reign.  (1662.) 

By  writ  of  Privy  Seal. 

HOWARD. 

When  the  Charter  was  read  to  the  freemen 
assembled  in  the  Meeting  House  yard  it  was 
by  common  consent  placed  for  safe  keeping  with 
Mr.  Samuel  Wyllys,  whose  father  was  the  third 
Governor  of  the  Colony,  Captain  John  Talcott 
and  Lieutenant  John  Allyn,1  and  at  the  first  meet- 

*John  Allyn  was  a  son  of  Matthew  Allyn,  one  of 
the  original  proprietors  of  Hartford,  but  subsequently 
of  Windsor,  where  he  removed  after  being  excommu- 
nicated by  the  church.  He  married  Ann,  daughter  of 
Henry  Smith,  of  Springfield.  By  her  he  had  six  daugh- 
ters. One  of  them  married  John  Gardiner,  of  Gardin- 
er's Island,  another  was  the  second  wife  of  Joseph 
Whiting,  the  Treasurer  of  the  colony,  and  another  the 
wife  of  William  Whiting,  Marshal  of  the  colony.  John 
Allyn  was  in  office  almost  continuously  from  1659, 
when  he  was  chosen  town  clerk  of  Hartford,  until  his 
death,  the  following  reference  to  his  services  appear- 
ing on  his  tombstone  in  the  old  burying  ground: 

"Here  lyes  interred  the  body  of  the  Honourable  Lt. 
Col.  John  Allyn,  who  served  His  Generation  in  the 
Capacity  of  a  Magistrate,  Secretary  of  the  Colony  of 
Connecticut,  34  years,  who  dyed  Nov.  6,  in  the  year 
1696." 


T/te  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         233 

ing  of  the  General  Court  after  Governor  Win- 
throp's  return  from  England  he  was  requested  to 
deliver  the  duplicate  to  the  same  parties.1  The 
two  Charters  remained  in  their  hands  from  that 
time  until  1687,  when  both  of  them  disappeared 
for  a  period. 

After  the  return  of  Governor  Winthrop  it  was 
learned  that  upon  his  arrival  in  London  he  re- 
paired to  the  home  of  William  Whiting  in  Cole- 
man  Street  near  St.  Stephen's  church.  He  was  a 

1  The  Colonial  Records  make  the  following  reference 
to  the  custody  of  the  Charters: 

"Oct.  9,  1662.  The  Patent  or  Charter  was  this  day 
publiquely  read  in  audience  of  ye  Freemen,  and  de- 
clared to  belong  to  them  and  their  successors,  and  ye 
freeman  made  choice  of  Mr.  Wyllys,  C:  John  Talcott 
and  Lt.  John  Allyn  to  take  the  Charter  into  their  cus- 
tody, in  behalf  of  ye  freemen,  who  are  to  have  an  oath 
administered  to  them  by  the  General  Assembly,  for 
ye  due  discharge  of  the  trust  committed  to  them." 

"August  19,  1663.  This  Court  doth  desire  that  those 
Friends  appoynted  to  keepe  the  Charter  do  allso  re- 
ceive the  Duplicate  into  their  custody,  and  keepe  it  in 
behalf e  of  ye  Freemen  of  this  Corporation:  and  the 
Woshipfull  Governour  is  desired  to  deliver  the  sd  Du- 
plicate to  the  said  Friends  or  either  of  them." 

If  the  Charter  and  duplicate  were  brought  to  Con- 
necticut as  would  be  inferred  from  the  above  orders, 
there  must  have  been  a  third  copy,  although  there  is  no 
record  of  it  having  been  made,  as  in  September,  1686, 
the  following  appears  in  the  instructions  sent  to  Wil- 
liam Whiting,  the  Colony's  agent  in  England:  "You 
are  to  have  ye  duplicate  of  our  Charter  ready  to  be  ex- 
hibited in  Court  if  need  be  (wch  by  Governour  Winthrop 
was  left  with  Mr.  James  Porter  of  London  and  since  by 
us  he  was  ordered  to  deliver  it  to  you." 


234  Wadsworth 

merchant,  like  his  father,  who  died  in  Hartford 
in  1647,  being  at  the  time  Treasurer  of  the  Colony, 
as  well  as  a  partner  of  Governor  Hopkins,  their 
dealings  extending  from  Virginia  to  Piscataqua, 
where  Whiting  had  interests  in  common  with 
Lord  Say  and  Seal,  Lord  Brooke  and  George 
Wyllys.  As  soon  as  he  was  comfortably  settled 
in  his  new  surroundings,  the  Governor,  in  accord- 
ance with  the  instructions  of  the  General  Court, 
began  to  make  inquiries  as  to  the  whereabouts 
of  those  who  were  interested  in  the  Warwick 
patent  in  the  hope  of  procuring  a  copy  of  same  so  as 
to  determine  what  privileges,  rights  and  immunities 
were  granted  in  it.  After  diligent  inquiry  he  learned 
that  Lord  Say  and  Seal,  at  the  time  Lord  Privy 
Seal,  was  the  sole  survivor.  Mr.  Jessup,  who 
had  acted  as  clerk  for  the  corporation,  was  also 
supposed  to  be  in  London,  but  the  Governor  was 
unable  to  find  him  until  Lord  Say  and  Seal  had 
interested  the  Earl  of  Manchester  in  the  project. 
At  this  date  "old  Subtlety"  was  in  very  poor 
health.  He  was  excused  from  attendance  at 
Court,  his  general  weakness  and  an  attack  of  his 
old  enemy,  the  gout,  confining  him  to  his  estate 
during  the  latter  part  of  autumn  and  fully  half 
of  the  winter,  and  while  he  had  no  longer  an  ac- 
tive interest  in  the  colony  which  he  and  his  asso- 
ciates planned  in  America  over  a  quarter  of  a 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         235 

century  before,  he  still  had  a  friendly  feeling  for 
New  England  and  never  failed  when  before  the 
King  and  Council  to  advance  its  interests. 

Upon  advice  as  to  the  whereabouts  of  Lord 
Say  and  Seal  Governor  Winthrop  wrote  him,  and 
while  he  was  unable  to  favor  him  at  that  period 
as  he  did  later  with  his  presence  at  court,  he 
sent  him  letters  to  the  Earl  of  Manchester,1  who 
soon  put  the  Colonial  Governor  in  the  way  of 
finding  Mr.  Jessup  and  also  to  push  his  acquain- 
tance among  those  who  brought  him  and  his  mis- 
sion to  the  notice  of  the  King.  From  Mr.  Jessup 
the  Governor  learned  that  Edward  Hopkins  had 
a  copy  of  the  Warwick  patent  and  that  access 
could  be  had  to  it,  as  well  as  his  other  colonial 
papers,  by  applying  to  his  executor,  Henry  Dal- 
ley.  The  result  of  the  visit  has  been  referred  to 
on  a  preceding  page. 

Of  the  Governor's  new  acquaintances  at 
Whitehall,  no  one  gave  him  more  assistance  than 
the  Earl  of  Sandwich,  who  was  ever  zealous  in 
the  affairs  of  others  and  negligent  of  his  own. 
Both  the  King  and  his  brother,  the  Duke  of  York, 
who  was  afterwards  James  II.,  knew  that  he  did 
as  much  to  bring  about  the  Restoration  as  Monk, 

1  The  Parliamentary  General  who  was  instrumental 
in  the  King's  Restoration,  became  Chamberlain  of  the 
Household,  a  Privy  Councillor  and  Chancellor  of  the 
University  of  Cambridge.  He  died  in  1671. 


236  Wadsworth 

but  for  reasons  unknown  to  them,  although  the 
wife  of  the  old  soldier  never  hesitated  in  her 
rough  way  to  attribute  it  and  many  of  his  subse- 
quent acts  to  cowardice,1  he  allowed  the  bulk  of 
the  glory  to  go  to  the  General  who  was  created 
Duke  of  Albermarle  for  the  part  he  played  in  this 
bloodless  victory  of  the  Royalists. 

The  Earl  of  Sandwich  was  a  descendant  of  the 
Montagues,  who  purchased  Hinchenbrook  from 
Sir  Oliver  Cromwell.  He  stood  high  in  the  coun- 
cils of  the  Commonwealth,  one  of  the  last  acts 
of  its  governing  powers  being  to  appoint  him  a 
member  of  the  Council  of  State,  and  with  Monk 
a  General  at  Sea,  and  at  a  time  when  he  was  in 
active  correspondence  with  the  King  and  Duke 
of  York  in  reference  to  placing  the  former  on  the 
throne.  He  also  had  the  honor  of  bringing  the 
King  to  England. 

1  Pepys  in  his  Diary  quotes  the  Duchess  of  Albemarle 
as  having  said  in  the  presence  of  twenty  gentlemen 
"that  she  would  have  Montague  sent  once  more  to 
sea,  before  he  goes  his  embassy,  that  we  may  see 
whether  he  will  make  amends  for  his  cowardice." 
(Jan.  10,  1666.)  The  same  writer  also  refers  to  Gen- 
eral Monk  (Duke  of  Albemarle)  as  "a  dull  heavy  man," 
(March  I,  1660)  while  he  also  says  "I  perceive  his 
(Sir  Edmund  Montague)  being  willing  to  do  all  the 
honor  in  the  world  to  Monk  and  to  let  him  have  all 
the  honor  of  doing  the  business  (that  is,  bringing  in 
the  King)  though  he  will  many  times  express  his 
thought  of  him  to  be  but  a  thick  skulled  fool."  (May 
3,  1660.) 


EDWARD    MONTAGUE 
I  First   Earl   of   Sandwich) 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         239 

Upon  the  advice  of  the  Earls  of  Manchester 
and  Sandwich,  and  of  which  Lord  Say  and  Seal 
at  a  later  date  expressed  his  approval,  Governor 
Winthrop,  in  addition  to  presenting  the  petition 
approved  by  the  General  Court  of  Connecticut, 
also  asked  for  a  renewal  of  the  Warwick  patent 
on  account  of  the  original  having  been  destroyed 
in  the  Saybrook  Fort  fire,1  while  the  duplicate 
was  with  other  papers  lost  when  taken  abroad 
by  Lord  Keeper  Finch  during  King  Charles  I.'s 
troubles  with  the  Parliament.  The  petitions 


1  To  the  Kings  Most  Excellent 

The  humble  Peticon  of  John  Winthrop  Esqr.  in  the 
name  and  by  Order  of  your  Maties  most  Loyall,  obed- 
ient and  most  dutifull  Subjects,  the  Colony  of  Conecte- 
cut  in  New  England  in  all  humility 
Sheweth 

That  your  Maties  Subjects  of  the  said  Colony  of 
Conectecut  at  their  greate  expence  in  the  beginning  of 
the  late  unhappy  Civil  warr,  became  lawfully  seized  of 
all  the  Maineland  and  Islands,  Bayes,  Harbours, 
Creekes,  Fresh  Rivers  Rivelits  Mines  Mineralls  Quarries 
of  Stones  &c  with  Right  of  Government  in  and  over  all 
the  said  Colony,  Situate  and  lying  in  the  West  and 
Southward  parts  of  New  England  bounded  on  the  East 
with  the  Norriganset  Bay,  on  the  North  with  the  South 
Line  of  Mattechusets  on  the  South  with  the  Sea,  and 
thence  Westward  to  the  Pacifique  Sea,  comprehending 
all  that  part  of  your  Maties  Dominions  Westward  of  the 
said  Norriganset  Bay  called  New  England,  to  the 
Fortieth  Degree  of  Lattitude  North  from  the  Equator, 
all  which  they  peaceably  enjoyed  in  the  right  of  the 
right  Honorable  the  Lord  Viscount  Say  and  Scale  and 
the  Lord  Brookes  and  other  persons  of  Honour  their 
Associates  who  were  incorporated  with  the  said  Pattent 
about  the  Twelfth  yeare  of  the  Reigne  of  your  Maties 


240  Wadsworth 

made  rapid  progress  at  court,  as  the  Earl  of  Sand- 
wich at  that  period  of  all  men  knew  how  and 
when  to  approach  His  Majesty,  who  looked  upon 
matters  of  state  as  burdens  and  stumbling  blocks 
rolled  in  the  way  to  interfere  with  his  sports,  long 
walks  and  still  longer  dalliance  with  his  mis- 
tresses. The  gallant  Earl  ever  willing  to  follow 

Royall  Father  of  Blessed  memory,  Which  Colony  was 
settled  in  a  Competent  Measure  by  the  said  Originall 
Pattentees  at  their  greate  expence  in  Transporting 
some  hundred  of  Families,  Cattle  of  all  kindes  ffortify- 
ing  the  said  Colony,  in  which  Settlem*  your  Ma*'63 
Peticoner  was  employed  in  the  Right  of  the  said  Lords 
and  their  Associates  the  first  Pattentees. 

The  said  Lord  Viscount  Say  and  Scale  Lord  Brookes 
and  their  Associates  the  Lord  Proprietors  unwilling  to 
make  further  disbursements  on  the  said  Colony  did  by 
their  Agent  George  ffenwicke  Esqr  one  of  the  said 
Proprietors  make  sale  of  the  said  Colony  to  the  Peti- 
coner and  the  rest  of  the  Colonie  your  Maties  good  Sub- 
jects for  a  very  valuable  sume  of  money  who  have  since 
built  severall  Towns  and  Villages  which  the  Inhabitants 
have  ever  since  peaceably  enjoyed  by  virtue  of  their 
Purchase  from  the  first  Pattentees. 

But  soe  it  is,  the  Originall  Pattent  being  lost  in  a 
Fatall  Fire  at  Saybrook  fort  in  the  said  Colony  and  the 
Duplicate  being  lost  amongst  those  papers  carryed  be- 
yond the  Seas  by  the  Lord  Keeper  Finch  in  the  late 
Civill  Troubles,  Your  Maties  Peticoner  has  recourse 
(upon  your  Maties  happy  restoration)  to  the  Grace  and 
Clemency  inherent  in  your  Princely  minde,  and  most 
humbly  prayes  the  Reneual  of  the  said  Pattent  under 
your  Maties  greate  Scale. 

And  yor  Maties  Peticoner  and  all  those  concerned  in 
the  said  Colony,  as  they  are  bound  in  duty  shall  ever 
pray  for  your  Majesty. 

J.  WINTHROP 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         241 

the  King  in  his  pleasures,  even  so  far  as  to  share 
in  his  vices,  was  also  high  in  the  good  graces 
of  the  Countess  of  Castlemaine,  who  for  many 
years  twisted  the  Merry  Monarch  around  her 
thumb. 

It  has  been  told,  and  I  have  no  reason  to  doubt 
it,  that  this  vacillating  mistress  of  the  King 
looked  for  a  time  with  more  than  ordinary  favor 
upon  Governor  Winthrop's  mission,  being  fasci- 
nated with  his  recital  of  adventures  and  the  won- 
ders of  the  New  World,  and  in  one  of  her  flam- 
boyant moments  begged  of  him  for  her  cabinet 
the  Indian  deed,  promising  in  return  for  the 
parchment  bearing  the  totem  of  the  Suckiag 
Indians,  her  influence  to  obtain  a  charter  under 
the  broad  seal  of  England  from  her  Sovereign 
Lord,  King  Charles  II.  The  Earl  of  Sandwich 
who  was  well  acquainted  with  the  petulant  tem- 
per of  the  lady  advised,  aye,  even  insisted  upon 
the  Governor  complying  with  her  request,  which 
was  literally  a  demand,  telling  him  that  she  would 
soon  tire  of  the  novelty  and  that  he  or  one  of  his 
servants,  almost  all  of  whom  were  on  friendly 
terms  with  the  Castlemaine  household,  would  get 
it  for  him  as  soon  as  the  charter  passed  the  seal. 
The  Countess  also  proved  true  to  her  promise, 
and  when  Lord  Say  and  Seal  returned  to  court 
he  found  that  the  Connecticut  Charter  was  as- 


242  Wadsworth 

sured,  but  death  claimed  him  nine  days  before  it 
was  signed. 

In  due  time  the  Charter  and  duplicate  passed 
the  great  seal,  the  former  being  forwarded  to 
New  England  and  the  duplicate,  from  which  a 
copy  was  made  for  the  colony's  agent  in  Lon- 
don, was  retained  by  Governor  Winthrop  until  he 
returned  to  Hartford  in  June,  1663.  Prior  to  his 
departure  from  England  he  sought  the  Earl  of 
Sandwich  in  order  to  recover  the  Indian  deed,  but 
found  him  dangerously  ill,  so  bad  in  fact  that  his 
life  was  despaired  of.  Knowing  that  with  the 
Charter  the  deed  was  of  little  or  no  value,  except 
for  sentimental  reasons,  the  Governor  left  the 
matter  in  the  hands  of  the  colony's  agent.  He 
failed  to  secure  it,  although  he  ultimately  learned 
that  it  was  destroyed  by  a  fire  in  the  Castlemaine 
apartments.1  When  the  fragment  of  this  story 
leaked  out  a  few  of  the  original  planters  insisted 
upon  procuring  another  deed  from  the  descend- 

1  January  26,  1663-4.  Pepys  writes  "Tom  Killegrew 
told  us  of  a  fire  last  night  in  My  Lady  Castlemaine's 
lodging,  which  she  did  bid  40  pounds  for  one  to  ad- 
venture the  fetching  of  a  cabinet  out,  which  at  last 
was  got  to  be  done,  and  the  fire  at  last  quenched  with- 
out doing  much  wrong."  On  January  20,  four  days 
prior  to  the  fire,  he  also  made  note  of  the  intimacy 
existing  between  the  Countess  and  the  Earl  of  Sand- 
wich, or  as  he  worded  it  "My  Lord  Fitz  Harding  and 
the  Hambletons  and  sometimes  My  Lord  Sandwich 
they  say  have  their  snaps  with  her." 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed        243 

ants  of  the  Indians  who  had  by  right  of  inher- 
itance a  claim  to  any  of  the  lands  included  in  the 
treaty  of  1636.  They  were  therefore  summoned 
to  Hartford,  where  on  July  5,  1670,  the  following 
was  drawn  up  and  signed : 

"Whereas  our  predecessor,  Sunckquasson,  sachem  of 
Suckiage,  alias  Hartford,  did  about  the  yeare  sixteen 
hundred  thirty  six,  by  a  writeing  under  his  hand,  pass 
over  unto  Mr.  Samuel  Stone  and  Mr.  Wm.  Goodwin, 
in  the  behalf  of  the  present  proprietors  and  owner  of 
the  lands  belonging  to  the  township  of  Hartford,  all 
that  part  of  his  country  from  a  tree  marked  N.  F. 
which  is  the  divident  between  Hartford  and  Wethers- 
field — we  say  from  the  afoarsayd  tree  on  the  south, 
till  it  meet  with  Windsor  bounds  on  the  north,  and 
from  the  great  river  on  the  east,  the  whole  bredth  to 
run  into  the  wilderness  towards  the  west  full  six  miles, 
which  is  to  the  place  where  Hartford  and  Farmington 
bounds  meet;  which  grant  of  Sunckquasson,  as  occa- 
sion hath  been,  was  by  him  renewed  to  the  honoured 
John  Haines,  Esqr.  and  other  the  first  magistrates  of 
this  place,  and  enlarged  to  the  westward  so  far  as  his 
country  went;  which  enlargement  as  well  as  his  former 
grant  was  made  in  presence  of  many  of  the  natives  of 
the  place  and  English  inhabitants;  and  severall  yeares 
after,  about  the  time  of  the  planting  of  Farmington 
in  the  yeare  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  forty,  in  a 
writeing  made  between  the  English  and  Pethus  the 
sachem  or  gentleman  of  that  place,  there  is  a  full 
mention  of  the  aforesayd  Sunckquasson  his  grant  of  his 
country  to  the  magistrates  of  this  place,  which  grant 
we  are  privy  too;  and  we  being  the  only  successors 


244  Wadsworth 

of  Sunckquasson  and  proprietors  (before  the  fore- 
mentioned  sale)  of  the  lands  belonging  to  the  town- 
ship of  Hartford  on  the  west  side  of  the  great  river, 
being  desired  to  confirm  and  pass  over  all  our  right 
and  interest  in  the  aforesayd  lands  to  the  present 
possessors  of  them,  they  informeing  us  that  those 
writeings  made  by  Sunckquasson  before  recited  are 
at  present  out  of  the  way,  knowing  what  our  pred- 
ecessor hath  done,  and  what  consideration  he  hath 
received  for  the  same, — 

We,  Masseeckcup  and  William  squa,  in  behalfe  of 
ourselves  and  Wawarme,  the  sister  and  onely  heire  of 
Sunckquasson,  and  Keepequam,  Seacutt,  Jack  Spiner, 
Currecombe,  Wehassatuck  squa  and  Seacunck  squa, 
the  onely  inhabitants  that  are  surviving  of  the  afoar- 
sayd  lands,  doe  by  these  presents  owne,  acknowledge 
and  declare,  that  Sunckquasson  whoe  was  the  sachem  of 
Suckiage  alias  Hartford,  and  grand  proprietor  of  the 
lands  adjacent,  did  with  the  consent  of  those  of  us 
whoe  were  of  age  to  declare  our  consent,  and  with  the 
consent  of  the  rest  of  the  inhabitants  of  this  place, 
about  the  year  1636,  pass  over  unto  Mr.  Samuel  Stone 
and  Mr.  Wm.  Goodwine,  in  behalfe  and  for  the  use  of 
themselves  and  their  company,  all  the  land  from 
Wethersfield  bounds  on  the  south,  to  Windsor  bounds 
on  the  north,  and  the  whole  bredth  from  Connecticutt 
river  on  the  east  six  large  miles  into  the  wilderness  on 
the  west,  which  sayd  grant  was  afterwards  upon  fur- 
ther consideration  renewed  and  enlarged  by  the  sayd 
Sunckquasson,  upon  the  desire  of  the  honoured  Mr. 
Haines  and  the  rest  of  the  magistrates  of  this  place; 
but  we  being  informed  that  on  the  removeall  of  some 
of  the  gentlemen  afoarmentioned,  the  papers  and  write- 
ings before  specifyed  are  out  of  the  way,  and  haveing 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         245 

now  received  of  Mr.  Samuel  Willys,  Capt.  John  Tall- 
cott,  Mr.  John  Allyn  and  Mr.  James  Richards  a  farther 
gratification  of  near  the  value  the  land  was  esteemed 
at  before  the  English  came  into  these  parts — to  prevent 
all  father  trouble  between  ourselves  and  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Hartford,  we  the  sayd  Masseeckcup,  William 
squa  as  afoarsayd,  and  Seacutt,  Keepequam,  Jack 
Spiner,  Currecombe,  Wehassatuck  squa  and  Seacunck 
squa,  upon  the  consideration  forementioned  by  these 
presents  have  and  doe  fully,  clearly  and  absolutely 
grant,  bargain,  sell,  alien,  enfeoffe  and  confirme  unto 
Mr.  Samuel  Willys,  Capt.  John  Tallcott,  Mr.  John 
Allyn  and  Mr.  James  Richards,  in  behalfe  of  the  rest 
of  the  proprietors  of  the  land  belonging  to  the  town- 
ship of  Hartford,  their  heires  and  assignes  forever,  all 
that  parcell  of  land  from  a  tree  marked  N.  F.  being  a 
boundary  between  Wethersfield  and  Hartford  on  the 
south,  to  Windsor  bounds  on  the  north,  and  the  whole 
bredth  of  land  from  Wethersfield  to  Windsor  bounds 
from  the  great  river  on  the  east  to  runn  into  the  wilder- 
ness westward  full  six  miles,  which  is  to  the  place 
where  Hartford  and  Farmington  bounds  meet, — To 
have  and  to  hold  all  the  afoarsayd  parcell  of  land  as  it 
is  bounded,  with  all  the  meadowes,  pastures,  woodes, 
underwood,  stones,  quarries,  brookes,  ponds,  rivers, 
profitts,  comodities  and  appurtenances  whatsoever  be- 
longing thereto,  unto  the  sayd  Mr.  Samuel  Willys, 
Capt.  John  Tallcott,  Mr.  James  Richards  and  Mr.  John 
Allyn,  in  behalfe  of  themselves  and  the  rest  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  towne  of  Hartford,  whoe  are  stated 
proprietors  in  the  undivided  lands,  their  heires  and 
assignes,  to  the  onely  proper  use  and  behoofe  of  the 
sayd  Mr.  Samuel  Willys,  Capt.  John  Tallcott,  Mr.  John 
Allyn  and  Mr.  James  Richards  as  afoarsayd,  their 


246  Wadsworlh 

heires  and  assignes  forever;  and  the  sayd  Massecup 
and  Wm  squa  in  behalfe  of  themselves  and  Wawarme 
the  sister  of  Sunckquasson  and  Seacutt,  Keepequam, 
Jack  Spiner,  Currecombe,  Wehassatuck  squa,  and 
Secunck  squa,  doe  covenant  to  and  with  the  sayd  Mr. 
Samuel  Willys,  Mr.  John  Talcott,  Mr.  James  Richards 
and  Mr.  John  Allyn,  that  after  and  next  unto  the  afoar- 
sayd  Sunckquasson,  they  the  said  Masseeckcup,  Wm 
squa,  Seacutt,  Keepequam,  &c.,  have  onely  full  power, 
good  right,  and  lawfull  authority  to  grant,  bargain,  sell 
and  convey  all  and  singular  the  before  hereby  granted 
or  mentioned  to  be  granted  premises  with  their  and 
every  of  their  appurtenances,  unto  the  sayd  Mr.  Sam- 
uel Willys,  Mr.  John  Talcott,  Mr.  John  Allyn,  and  Mr. 
James  Richards  as  aforesayd,  their  heires  and  assignes 
forever  and  that  they  the  sayd  Mr.  Samuel  Willys,  Mr. 
John  Talcott,  Mr.  John  Allyn  and  Mr.  James  Richards 
and  the  rest  of  the  proprietors  of  the  undivided  lands 
within  the  bounds  of  the  township  of  Hartford,  their 
heires  and  assignes,  shall  and  may  by  force  and  vertue 
of  these  presents,  from  time  to  time  and  all  times  for- 
ever hereafter,  lawfully  have,  receive  and  take  the 
rents  issues  and  profitts  thereof  to  their  owne  proper 
use  and  behoofe  forever,  without  any  lett,  suit,  trouble 
or  disturbance  whatsoever  of  the  heires  of  Sunck- 
quasson or  of  us  the  sayd  Massecup,  Wm  squa,  Sea- 
cutt, Keepequam,  Jack  Spiner,  Currecombe,  Wehassa- 
tuck squa,  and  Seacunck  squa,  our  heires  or  assignes, 
or  of  any  other  person  or  persons  whatsoever  clayming 
by,  from  or  under  us  or  any  of  us  of  by  our  meanes, 
act,  consent,  priority  or  procurement,  and  that  free  and 
clear  and  freely  and  clearly  acquitted  exonerated  and 
discharged  or  otherwise  from  time  to  time,  well  and 
sufficiently  saved  and  kep  harmless  by  the  sayd  Mas- 


The  Patent,  Charter  and  Deed         247 

secup,  William-squa,  Seacutt  and  Keepequam,  &c., 
their  heires,  executors  and  administrators  from  all  for- 
mer and  other  grants,  guifts,  bargains,  sales,  titles, 
troubles,  demands,  and  incumbrances  whatsoever  had, 
made,  committed,  suffered  or  done  by  the  afoarsayd 
Massecup,  William  squa,  Keepequam,  Seacutt,  &c. 

"In   witness   whereof,   they   have  signed,  sealed   and 
delivered    this    writeing    with    their    own    hands,    this 
fifth  of  July,  one  thousand  six  hundred  and  seventy. 
Signed  sealed  and  delivered 

in  presence  of 

Arramatt,  his  mark,       Masseeckcup,  his  mark,        L.  S. 

Mamanto,  his  mark,       Seacutt,  his  mark,  L.  S. 

Neschegen,  his  mark,     Jack  Spiner,  his  mark,  L.  S. 

Attumtoha,  his  mark,     Seacunck,  his  mark,  L.  S. 

Wennoe,  his  mark,         Currecombe,  his  mark,         L.  S. 

Will.  Wadsworth,  Keepequam,  his  mark,  L.  S. 

John  Adams,  William  squa's  mark,  L.  S. 

John  Strickland,  Wehassatuck  squa's  mark,  L.  S. 

Giles  Hamlin.  Nescanett  gives  consent  to  this 

grant  and  bargain,  as  he  wit- 

nesseth  by  subscribing 

Nesacanett,  his  mark,  L.  S. 


HIDING  THE  CHARTER 


HIDING  THE  CHARTER 


In  the  twenty-four  years  that  elapsed  between 
the  arrival  of  the  Charter  and  Gov.  Andros'  visit 
to  Hartford,  the  Connecticut  colony  became  the 
granary  of  New  England.  It  exported  so  much 
grain  that  Sir  Edmund,  in  the  winter  of  1675-6 
sent  Captain  Salisbury  to  England  to  advise  the 
Duke  of  York  that  it  was  impossible  for  the  gov- 
ernment of  New  York  to  subsist  without  the  ad- 
dition of  that  colony. 

The  wheat,  corn,  peas  and  beans  grown  in  the 
valleys  of  Connecticut,  were  carried  in  vessels  to 
Boston,  New  York,  the  West  Indies  and  Eng- 
land, the  merchants  and  others  who  shipped  it 
bringing  back  products  which  made  colonial  life 
more  comfortable,  while  the  material  comforts  of 
the  inhabitants  were  not  forgotten,  tobacco,1 

1  At  the  General  Court  which  was  held  in  Hartford, 
June  n,  1640,  it  was  ordered  "that  what  person  or  per- 
sons within  this  jurisdiction  shall,  after  September, 
1641,  drinke  any  other  Tobacco  but  such  as  is  or  shalbe 
planted  within  these  libertyes,  shall  forfeit  for  every 
pownd  so  spent  fiue  shillings,  except  they  haue  license 
fro  the  Courte."  This  order  was  repealed  January  28, 
1646-7,  and  the  following  adopted  at  the  General  Court 
May  20,  1647:  "Forasmuch  as  it  is  obsearued  that 
many  adbuses  are  committed  by  frequent  takeing  To- 
bacco, It  is  Ordered,  that  noe  person  vnder  the  age  of 
20  years,  nor  any  other  that  hath  not  allreddy  accus- 


252  Wadsworth 

wine,  and  strong  waters1  being  brought  in  large 
quantities  and  consumed  so  freely  that  the  Gen- 

tomed  himselfe  to  the  vse  therof,  shall  take  any  To- 
bacco vntil  he  haue  brought  a  Certificat,  vnder  the 
hand  of  some  who  are  approued  for  knowledg  and 
skill  in  phisicke,  that  it  is  vsefull  for  him,  and  also 
that  he  hath  receaued  a  lycence  fro  the  Court  for  the 
same.  And  for  the  regulateing  those  who  either  by 
their  former  takeing  yt  haue  to  their  owne  apprehen- 
sions made  yt  necessary  to  them,  or  vppon  due  aduice 
are  persuaded  to  the  vse  thereof.  It  is  Ordered,  that 
no  man  within  this  Colony,  after  the  publication  hereof, 
shall  take  any  tobacco  publicquelv  in  the  street,  nor 
shall  take  yt  in  the  fyelds  or  woods}  vnlesse  when  they 
be  on  their  trauill  or  joyrny  at  lest  10  myles,  or  at  the 
ordinary  tyme  of  repast  comonly  called  dynner,  or  if  it 
be  not  then  taken,  yet  not  aboue  once  in  the  day  at 
most,  and  then  not  in  company  with  any  other.  Nor 
shall  any  inhabiting  in  any  of  the  Townes  within  this 
Jurisdiction,  take  any  Tobacco  in  any  howse  in  the  same 
Towne  wher  he  liueth,  with  and  in  the  company  of 
any  more  then  one  who  vseth  and  drinketh  the  same 
weed,  with  him  at  that  tyme;  vnder  the  penulty  of  six 
pence  for  ech  offence  against  this  Order,  in  any  of  the 
particulers  thereof,  to  be  payd  without  gainsaying, 
vppon  conuiction  by  the  testimony  of  one  witnesse  that 
is  without  just  exception,  before  any  one  Magistrate; 
and  the  Constables  in  the  seuerall  Townes  are  required 
to  make  presentment  to  ech  particuler  Court  of  such  as 
they  doe  vnderstand  and  can  evict  to  be  transgressors 
of  the  Order."  This  order  appears  under  the  head 
"Tobacko"  in  the  Code  of  1650. 

1  The  following  order  in  reference  to  the  excessive 
use  of  same  was  adopted  May  20,  1647:  "And  for  the 
preuenting  that  great  abuse  which  is  creeping  in  by 
excesse  in  Wyne  and  strong  waters,  It  is  Ordered,  that 
noe  inhabitant  in  any  Towne  of  this  Jurisdiction  shall 
continue  in  any  comon  victualing  howse  in  the  same 
Towne  wher  he  liueth  aboue  halfe  an  hower  att  a  tyme 
in  drinkeing  wyne,  bear  or  hotte  waters,  nether  shall 
any  who  draweth  &  selleth  wyne  suffer  any  to  drynke 


Hiding  the  Charter  253 

eral  Court  was  time  and  again  called  upon  to 
pass  laws  against  the  indiscriminate  sale  and  use 
of  them. 

During  this  period  I  received  my  share  of  at- 
tention from  the  horn  book  at  school  and  the 
stick  of  the  tithing  man1  at  meeting,  a  turbulent 
and  an  impulsive  nature  making  me  a  leader  of 
the  lads  in  the  misdemeanors  of  the  town.  As 
soon  as  I  was  old  enough  I  became  a  member  of 
the  train  band,  of  which  I  was  subsequently 

any  more  wyne  att  on  tyme  then  after  the  proportion 
of  three  to  a  pynt  of  sacke.  And  it  is  further  Ordered, 
that  noe  such  wyne  drawer  deliuer  any  wyne,  or  suffer 
any  to  be  deliuered  out  of  his  howse  to  any  who  com 
for  yt,  vnlesse  they  bring  a  noate  vnder  the  hand  of 
some  one  Mister  of  some  family  and  alowed  inhabitant 
of  that  Towne,  nether  shall  any  such  Ordinary  keep, 
sell  or  drawe  any  hotte  waters  to  any  but  in  case  of 
necessity,  and  in  such  moderation  for  quantity  as  they 
may  haue  good  grownds  to  conceaue  yt  may  not  be 
abused;  and  shalbe  reddy  to  giue  an  accoumpte  of 
their  doeings  herein  when  they  are  cauled  thereto, 
vnder  Censure  of  the  Court  in  a  case  of  delinquency." 
1  A  parish  officer  elected  annually  to  preserve  order 
in  meeting  during  divine  service.  He  was  provided 
with  a  staff  which  had  a  rabbit's  foot  at  one  end  and  a 
piece  of  iron  on  the  other,  the  former  being  used  to 
rouse  sleepy  ladies,  and  the  latter  to  keep  the  boys  in 
order  or  out  of  the  land  of  nod.  A  writer  in  Hartford 
in  History  also  says  that  the  tithing  man  was  required 
to  "look  after  young  people  illegally  walking  together 
on  the  Sabbath,  after  strangers  at  inns,  after  travelers, 
after  such  as  'lye  at  home'  or  'linger  without  doors  at 
meeting  time,'  and  after  'all  sons  of  Belial  strutting 
about,  setting  on  fences  and  otherwise  desecrating  the 
day.' " 


254  Wadsworth 

Sergeant,  Lieutenant,  and  afterwards  Captain.1 
Also  when  I  arrived  at  the  proper  age  I  was  made 
a  freeman2  of  the  colony  and  afterwards  a 
Deputy3  to  the  General  Court,  my  first  service  in 
the  latter  being  prior  to  the  trouble  over  the 
Charter. 

Time  and  again  it  has  been  said  that  war  at- 
tracts the  attention  of  the  aggressive  and  I  cer- 
tainly must  be  numbered  among  them,  for  as  soon 
as  King  Philip  began  the  war  which  laid  waste  to 
a  greater  part  of  Massachusetts  and  Rhode  Island 
I  was  ready  to  march  out  and  meet  him.  For- 
tunately Connecticut  was  not  called  upon  to  make 
any  sacrifices  in  this  troublous  time,  as  aside 
from  the  burning  of  Simsbury  there  was  no  prop- 
erty lost  in  the  colony  and  I  always  believed  that 
it  would  not  have  happened  if  the  people  had  re- 
mained in  their  homes  instead  of  rushing  off  to 
Windsor,  after  burying  the  most  of  their  property 
in  the  swamp  and  losing  it,  as  no  one  has  found 

1  Joseph  Wadsworth  is  referred  to  as  Sargeant  in 
order  of  Council  dated  Sept.  6,  1675.  He  was  appointed 
Lieutenant  January  14,  1675,  and  Captain  by  order  of 
the  General  Assembly  October  14,  1697,  although  he 
appears  as  Captain  in  the  list  of  Deputies  elected  May 
9,  1695- 

'Propounded  for  freeman  May  u,  1676,  was  admitted 
at  session  of  General  Court  October  12,  1676. 

*  He  was  a  Deputy  from  Hartford  in  1685,  1694,  1695. 
1699,  1703,  1704  and  1705. 


Hiding  the  Charter  255 

the  place  of  sepulture  to  this  day.  Major  Treat, 
afterwards  Governor  of  the  colony,  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  Connecticut  troops  from  the  begin- 
ning of  the  war  until  after  the  burning  of  the 
Narragansett  Fort.  He  relieved  Hadley  and 
would  have  saved  Springfield,  when  a  portion  of 
it  was  burned  by  the  Indians,  had  he  not  been  de- 
layed in  getting  boats  to  cross  the  river. 

After  the  Commissioners  of  the  United  Col- 
onies decided  upon  a  winter  campaign  and  to  at- 
tack the  Indians  at  their  headquarters  in  the 
Narragansett  country  it  was  resolved  to  raise  an 
army  of  one  thousand  men.  Of  that  portion  Con- 
necticut supplied  three  hundred  Englishmen  and 
one  hundred  and  fifty  Mohegan  and  Pequot  In- 
dians, the  latter  being  attached  to  the  companies 
commanded  by  Captain  John  Gallup  of  Stoning- 
ton  and  Captain  John  Mason  of  Norwich.  The 
other  three  companies  of  the  Connecticut  division 
were  commanded  by  Samuel  Marshall  of  Wind- 
sor, Thomas  Watts  of  Hartford  and  Nathaniel 
Seely  of  Stratford.  Gershom  Bulkeley  was  sur- 
geon, Reverend  Nicholas  Boyes  chaplain  and 
Stephen  Barret  commissary. 

This  corps,  under  the  command  of  Major  Treat, 
marched  from  Stonington  to  Petty quamscott, 
where  it  arrived  on  December  17  and  found  the 
buildings  in  which  they  expected  to  find  shelter 


256  Wadsworth 

had  been  burned  a  day  or  two  before  by  the  In- 
dians. The  next  day  they  joined  the  Massachu- 
setts and  Plymouth  forces  and  after  remaining 
over  night  in  an  open  field  continued  the  march 
towards  the  Narragansett  fort,  which  was 
reached  about  noon  Sunday,  December  19. 

The  fort1  was  on  an  island  of  five  or  six  acres 
in  the  midst  of  a  cedar  swamp  which  was  under 
water  except  in  the  driest  part  of  the  year.  It 
was  impassable  except  to  the  Indians  by  their 
accustomed  paths,  but  was  now  easily  approached 
as  the  severe  cold  had  turned  the  waters  of  the 
swamp  into  a  mass  of  ice.  The  fort  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  palisade  and  a  hedge  of  almost  a 
rod  in  thickness.  The  former,  however,  was  not 
all  completed  at  the  time  of  the  attack  and  the 
English  were  fortunate  in  coming  upon  the  place. 
It  was  at  a  corner  and  while  there  was  a  block- 
house opposite  the  gap  and  flankers  at  both  sides 
of  it,  there  was  nothing  across  it  except  a  long 
tree  about  five  feet  from  the  ground.  Captains 
Johnson  and  Davenport  rushed  into  this  opening 
with  the  Massachusetts  troops.  Johnson  fell  at 

'The  scene  of  the  battle  was  in  West  Kingston, 
Rhode  Island,  on  the  estate  of  J.  G.  Clark,  whose  res- 
idence is  about  a  mile  from  where  the  fort  was  located. 
The  island  was  cleared  and  ploughed  about  1775,  while 
the  swampy  land  is  still  overflowed  except  in  the  driest 
part  of  the  season. 


Hiding  the  Charter  257 

the  log  and  Davenport  within  the  fort.  With 
their  leaders  gone  the  troops  fell  on  their  faces  to 
escape  the  galling  fire  of  musketry  and  retreated 
as  soon  as  it  abated.  Captains  Moseley  and  Gar- 
diner pressed  up  to  take  their  places,  but  had  to 
fall  back.  They  were  succeeded  by  Major  Apple- 
ton  and  Captain  Oliver,  who  drove  the  enemy  out 
of  one  of  the  flankers. 

Holding  the  Plymouth  forces  in  reserve,  Gen- 
eral Josiah  Winslow  rushed  forward  the  Connec- 
ticut troops  which  were  in  the  rear  of  the  army. 
Not  being  aware  of  the  extent  of  the  danger  from 
the  blockhouse,  Captain  Marshall's  company  suf- 
fered terribly  as  it  entered  the  line  of  fire. 
Marshall  fell  at  the  tree.  As  he  dropped  Major 
Treat  assumed  command  of  the  company  and 
beckoning  for  the  men  to  follow  him  rushed  into 
the  fort.  With  a  yell  that  could  be  heard  above 
the  cries  of  the  Indians  and  the  roar  of  the  mus- 
kets, Gallup  and  Seely  followed  him.  Both  of  them 
were  shot  down,  while  Captain  Mason  received 
a  wound  from  which  he  died  nine  months  later. 

As  the  Connecticut  troops  forced  back  the 
enemy  the  Massachusetts  forces  joined  them. 
Step  by  step  they  drove  the  Indians  out  of  the 
blockhouses  into  the  wigwams.  After  three  hours' 
fighting  the  order  to  destroy  the  place  by  fire 


258  Wadsworfh 

came,  and  as  in  the  Pequot  fight,  the  scene  of 
carnage  became  a  fearful  holocaust. 

Major  Treat  was  in  the  thick  of  the  fight  from 
the  beginning  and  in  one  of  the  skirmishes  re- 
ceived a  ball  through  the  rim  of  his  hat.  He 
was  the  last  man  who  left  the  fort  in  the  dusk  of 
the  evening,  commanding  the  rear  of  the  army. 
Of  his  five  captains  three  were  killed  and  one 
wounded,  while  of  the  three  hundred  Englishmen 
seventy  were  killed  or  wounded;  twenty  in  Cap- 
tain Seely's,  ten  in  Captain  Gallup's,  seventeen  in 
Captain  Watt's,  nine  in  Captain  Mason's  and  four- 
teen in  Captain  Marshall's  company.  Of  these 
about  forty  were  killed  or  died  of  their  wounds. 
About  half  of  the  loss  in  action  fell  upon  Connec- 
ticut and  they,  as  well  as  those  who  survived 
them,  richly  deserved  the  following  tribute  which 
was  subsequently  made  by  the  legislature  of  the 
colony : 

"In  that  signal  service,  the  fort  fight,  in  Narragan- 
sett,  as  we  had  our  full  number,  in  proportion  with  the 
other  confederates,  so  all  say  they  did  their  full  propor- 
tion of  service.  Three  noble  soldiers,  Seely,  courageous 
Marshall,  and  bold  Gallup,  died  in  the  bed  of  honour; 
and  valiant  Mason,  a  fourth  captain,  had  his  death's 
wound.  There  died  many  brave  officers,  and  sentinels, 
whose  memory  is  blessed;  and  whose  death  redeemed 
our  lives.  The  bitter  cold,  the  tarled  swamp,  the 
tedious  march,  the  strong  fort,  the  numerous  and  stub- 
born enemy  they  contended  with,  for  their  God,  king 


CONNECTICUT  GOVERNORS 


Hiding  the  Charter  261 

and  country,  be  their  trophies  over  death.  He  that 
commanded  our  forces  then,  and  now  us,  made  no  less 
than  seventeen  fair  shots  at  the  enemy,  and  was  thereby 
as  oft  a  fair  mark  for  them.  Our  mourners,  over  all 
the  colony,  witness  for  our  men,  that  they  were  not  un- 
faithful in  that  day." 

On  April  5,  1676,  John  Winthrop,  the  Governor 
of  Connecticut,  died  in  Boston  while  attending  a 
meeting  of  the  Commissioners  of  the  United  Col- 
onies. At  the  election  on  May  n  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  William  Leete,  while  Major  Robert 
Treat1  was  chosen  Deputy-Governor  and  Major 
John  Talcott  appointed  to  command  the  troops 
during  the  balance  of  the  war,  which  dragged 
along  until  King  Philip  was  killed  in  the  swamp 
near  Mount  Hope  on  August  12.  When  Major 
Talcott  was  made  chief  in  command,  the  Reverend 
Gershom  Bulkeley  of  Wethersfield  was  appointed 
surgeon.  The  latter  was  the  son  of  Peter  Bulke- 
ley, the  first  minister  of  Concord,  Mass.,  and 
Grace,  the  daughter  of  Sir  Richard  Chitwood. 
He  was  born  December  26,  1635,  a  few  weeks 
after  their  arrival  in  America.  It  is  stated  that 
his  mother  apparently  died  on  the  passage  to 

1  Robert  Treat  was  born  in  England  in  1622  and  came 
to  America  with  his  father.  In  1641  he  located  at  Mil- 
ford  and  moved  from  there  to  New  Jersey  when  the 
Connecticut  and  New  Haven  colonies  were  united.  He 
was  one  of  the  founders  of  Newark  and  remained  there 
until  1672,  when  he  returned  to  Milford. 


262  Wadsworth 

this  country  and  as  her  husband  supposed  land 
was  near  he  prevailed  upon  the  captain,  notwith- 
standing the  superstitious  fears  of  the  sailors,  to 
keep  the  body  three  days  beyond  the  time  ap- 
pointed for  consigning  it  to  the  deep.  A  chest1 
containing  a  portion  of  their  earthly  possessions 
was  emptied  and  the  body  placed  in  it.  On  the 
third  day  symptoms  of  vitality  were  discovered 
and  before  the  vessel  reached  land  animation  was 
restored,  and  although  carried  from  the  vessel  an 
invalid,  Mrs.  Bulkeley  survived  her  husband  and 
followed  her  son,  Gershom,  to  New  London, 
where  after  graduating  at  Harvard  in  divinity 
and  medicine  in  1659  he  was  installed  as  a  minis- 
ter. In  1666  he  removed  to  Wethersfield  to 
preach  to  a  portion  of  the  congregation  over 
which  John  Russell  presided  before  he  accom- 
panied the  "withdrawers"  to  Hadley.  When  the 
King  Philip  war  broke  out  Gershom  Bulkeley  ac- 
companied Captain  Thomas  Bull  to  Saybrook  and 
was  present  when  Edmund  Andros  made  an  ef- 
fort to  take  possession  of  the  fort. 

1This  chest  is  now  owned  by  Ex-Governor  Morgan 
Gardner  Bulkeley,  the  most  prominent  representative 
of  the  family  since  his  distinguished  ancestor,  Gershom 
Bulkeley,  brought  the  name  to  Connecticut  in  1659.  By 
a  strange  coincidence  both  of  them  were  born  on  the 
same  date,  providing  allowance  is  not  made  for  the 
eleven  days  change  in  calendar,  Gershom  Bulkeley  as 
stated  in  the  text  being  born  December  26,  1635,  and 
Morgan  Gardner  Bulkeley  December  26,  1838. 


Hiding  the  Charter  263 

As  the  latter  played  a  very  important  part  in 
the  history  of  New  England  from  the  time  of  the 
King  Philip  war  until  after  James  II.  was  driven 
from  the  throne  of  England,  a  few  words  in  refer- 
ence to  him  would  scarcely  be  out  of  place.  Sir 
Edmund  Andros,  Lord  Seignoire  of  Saufmarez  in 
the  Island  of  Guernsey,  was  born  in  London  De- 
cember 6,  1637.  His  ancestors  were  originally 
from  Northamptonshire,  where  they  were  known 
as  Andrews  or  Andros,  and  became  connected 
with  the  Island  of  Guernsey  in  1543,  when  one  of 
them,  acting  as  lieutenant  to  Sir  Peter  Meautis, 
the  Governor,  married  Judith  D'Saufmarez,  the 
heiress  who  brought  the  fief  of  Saufmarez  into 
the  family.  Amice  Andros,  the  father  of  Ed- 
mund Andros,  married  Elizabeth  Stone,  sister  of 
Major  Stone,  cupbearer  to  the  Queen  of  Bohemia 
and  Captain  of  a  troop  of  horse  in  Holland.  He 
was  master  of  ceremonies  to  Charles  I.  at  the 
time  of  the  birth  of  his  son,  who  was  brought  up 
in  the  royal  family  and  during  its  exile  com- 
menced his  career  as  a  soldier  in  Holland  under 
Prince  Henry  of  Nassau.  After  the  Restoration, 
Edmund  Andros  was  appointed  Gentleman  in 
Ordinary  to  the  King's  aunt,  the  Queen  of  Bo- 
hemia, whose  daughter,  Princess  Sophia,  be- 
came the  mother  of  George  I.  of  England. 


264  Wadsworth 

Edmund  Andros  distinguished  himself  in  the 
Dutch  war  which  ended  in  1667,  but  was  not 
heard  from  again  until  1672,  when  he  appears  as 
the  commander  of  the  forces  in  Barbadoes  and 
during  which  he  acquired  a  knowledge  of  Ameri- 
can affairs.  Under  royal  warrant  of  the  Master 
General  of  Ordnance,  on  April  2  of  that  year,  a 
regiment  of  dragoons  raised  for  the  King's 
cousin,  Prince  Rupert,  was  directed  to  be  armed 
"with  the  bayonet  or  great  knife,"  this  being  its 
first  introduction  into  the  English  army.  An- 
dros was  promoted  to  this  regiment,  and  the  four 
companies  then  under  his  command  in  Barbadoes 
advanced  to  be  a  troop  of  horse  in  it. 

In  1674  upon  the  death  of  his  father  he  suc- 
ceeded to  the  office  of  Bailiff  of  Guernsey,  the 
reversion  to  which  had  been  granted  to  him  by 
King  Charles  during  his  father's  lifetime.  The 
same  year,  the  war  which  had  been  re-commenced 
with  the  Dutch  having  terminated,  Andros'  regi- 
ment was  disbanded  and  he  was  commissioned  by 
the  King  to  receive  New  York  and  its  depend- 
encies pursuant  to  the  treaty  of  peace,  which  was 
signed  at  Westminister  February  9,  1674.  On 
June  29  of  the  same  year  the  Duke  of  York,  to 
remove  all  grounds  of  controversy  respecting  the 
title  of  his  American  claim,  obtained  a  new  patent 
from  the  King  confirming  his  former  grant  of 


Hiding  the  Charter  265 

1664.  Two  days  later  he  appointed  Major  Andros 
his  lieutenant  and  governor  in  America  and  over 
all  the  territory  embraced  in  the  patent.  Andros 
arrived  in  New  York  on  November  I,  1674,  and 
ten  days  later  received  a  formal  surrender  of  the 
province  of  New  Netherlands  from  Governor 
Clove. 

As  soon  as  he  was  settled  in  New  York,  Gov- 
ernor Andros  sent  the  Governor  and  General 
Court  of  Connecticut  a  copy  of  the  Duke  of 
York's  patent,  and  the  following  spring  made  a 
demand  for  the  territory  included  in  same  lying 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  Connecticut,  "as  the 
Duke's  patent  included  all  of  the  land  from  the 
west  side  of  the  Connecticut  river  to  the  east  side 
of  the  Delaware  Bay."  As  a  portion  of  the  land 
was  in  1662  included  in  the  Connecticut  Charter, 
and  the  boundary  between  the  two  colonies  fixed 
by  a  former  governor  of  the  Duke  of  York,  the 
General  Court  of  Connecticut  advised  Governor 
Andros  that  it  did  not  have  a  plantation,  town, 
village,  house  or  place  in  its  possession  which  was 
not  within  the  limits  granted  by  His  Majesty  and 
approved  by  his  royal  letters.  On  July  8,  after  the 
beginning  of  the  King  Philip  war,  Edmund  An- 
dros appeared  at  Saybrook  with  two  sloops, 
ostensibly  to  protect  the  inhabitants  against  the 


266  Wadsworth 

Indians,  but  really  to  get  control  of  the  part  of 
the  colony  claimed  by  the  Duke  of  York. 

On  the  day  prior  to  Andros'  arrival,  Captain 
Thomas  Bull  was  sent  to  Saybrook  with  two 
companies  of  soldiers.  His  instructions  were  so 
framed  that  while  they  had  ostensible  reference 
to  the  protection  of  the  place  against  Indians, 
he  was  authorized  to  repel  aggression  from  any 
quarter  and  to  maintain  the  possession  of  the  fort 
if  necessary  by  force  of  arms.  Upon  his  arrival 
Governor  Andros  sent  Captain  Nichols,  with  two 
or  three  gentlemen,  on  shore  with  a  flag  in  the 
bow  of  the  boat  and  instructions  to  advise  the 
parties  that  he  was  there  to  give  assistance 
against  the  Indians  if  necessary.  The  occupants 
of  the  fort  and  the  inhabitants  of  Saybrook,  how- 
ever, were  well  aware  of  his  object,  and  lost  no 
time  in  advising  the  General  Court  at  Hartford. 
They  were  also  prepared  to  meet  the  Governor 
and  his  gentlemen  when  they  came  ashore  on  the 
morning  of  July  12  and  desired  to  speak  with  the 
ministers  and  chief  officers  of  the  place.  Failing 
in  this  Andros  ordered  that  the  Duke  of 
York's  charter  and  his  commission  be  read.  This 
was  done,  Captain  Bull  and  the  men  who  were 
with  him  withdrawing,  declaring  that  they  had 
nothing  to  do  with  it. 

As  soon  as  the  reading  was  completed  Captain 


Hiding  the  Charter  267 

Bull  presented,  and  had  read,  a  protest  from  the 
General  Court  in  which  it  tendered  "him  a  treaty 
by  meete  persons  deputed  to  that  purpose  in  any 
place  of  this  Colony  where  he  should  choose," 
while  Captain  Bull  informed  him  that  his  instruc- 
tions were  to  keep  the  King's  colors  standing  un- 
der his  majesty,  the  lieutenant  governor  of  Con- 
necticut, and  if  any  other  colors  were  set  up  they 
would  be  struck  down.  Governor  Andros, 
pleased  with  the  Captain's  bold  and  soldier-like 
appearance  said,  "What  is  your  name?"  He  re- 
plied, "My  name  is  Bull,  sir."  "Bull !"  said  the 
Governor,  "It  is  a  pity  that  your  horns  are  not 
tipped  with  silver."  Finding  that  he  could  make 
no  impression  upon  the  officers  or  people,  and 
that  Connecticut  was  determined  to  maintain  its 
chartered  rights,  Andros  gave  up  his  design  of 
seizing  the  fort  and  returned  to  his  vessels,  being 
guarded  to  the  water  side  by  town  soldiers.  Dur- 
ing this  trying  period  Captain  Bull  displayed  in 
military  affairs  the  courage  which  had  already 
distinguished  him  in  private  life,  and  especially  in 
winning  a  wife.1 

1  The  allusion  in  the  text  refers  to  a  matter  passed 
upon  at  the  County  Court,  holden  at  Hartford,  March 
4,  1669,  before  John  Winthrop,  Governor,  Captain  John 
Talcott,  Leftenant  John  Allyn,  Mr.  Henry  Wolcott,  and 
Mr.  Anthony  Hawkins,  Assistants.  The  following  ap- 
pears in  the  record: 

Benjamin  Waite  having  publiquely  protested  against 


268  Wadsworfh 

Gershom  Bulkeley  was  also  present  at  Saybrook 
when  Governor  Andros  made  his  visit.  Two  of 
the  letters  sent  to  the  General  Court  were  written 
by  him  and  while  it  approved  of  all  that  was 
done,  Deputy  Governor  Leete  was  of  the  opinion 
that  when  Andros  came  ashore  and  commanded 
the  Duke's  charter  and  commission  read,  they 
should  have  interrupted  "by  shouts  or  the  sound 

Thomas  Bull,  Jim.,  and  Esther  Cowles,  their  proceed- 
ings in  referrence  to  marriage  and  manifested  his  de- 
sires that  authority  would  not  marry,  or  any  ways 
contract  in  order  to  marriage,  them  the  said  Thomas 
and  Esther, — the  Court  desired  the  said  Waite,  that  he 
would  manifest  his  reasons  to  them  and  produce  his 
proofes  of  any  right  or  clayme  that  he  hath  to  the  said 
Esther  Cowles,  but  he  refused  to  attend  to  any  such 
thing  at  this  time;  the  Court  did  therefore  declare  to 
the  said  Benjamin  Waite,  that  they  did  not  judge  it 
reasonable  to  restrain  Thomas  Bull  and  Esther  Cowles 
from  marriage  'till  the  next  term  of  this  Court  in  Sep- 
tember next;  and  therefore,  if  the  said  Waite  doth  not 
make  good  his  clayme  and  prosecute  it  to  effect  be- 
tween this  and  the  7th  day  of  April  next,  (to  which 
day  this  Court  will  adjourn)  they  will  no  longer  deny 
them  the  said  Thomas  and  Esther  marriage. 

Esther  Cowles,  the  lady  in  question,  was  the  daughter 
of  John  Cowles,  of  Hatfield,  Massachusetts,  one  of  the 
first  settlers  of  that  town,  and  the  ancestor  of  all  who 
bear  that  name  now  dwelling  in  Farmington,  Con- 
necticut. Hannah  Cowles  and  Sarah  Cowles.  daughters 
of  John  Cowles,  married  inhabitants  of  Hartford,  the 
former  Caleb  Stanley,  and  the  latter  Nathaniel  Good- 
win. It  may  also  be  added  in  order  to  complete  the 
note  that  Benjamin  Waite  failed  to  produce  to  this  ad- 
journed Court  "proofes"  to  his  "clayme"  to  Miss  Esther 
Cowles,  and  she  soon  afterwards  became  Mrs.  Thomas 
Bull. 


Hiding  the  Charter  269 

of  a  drum,  &c.,  without  violence,"  as  I  was  in- 
structed when  in  the  fall  of  1693  Benjamin 
Fletcher,  another  governor  of  New  York,  came 
to  Connecticut  to  take  command  of  the  militia,1 
and  met  with  no  better  success  than  his  predeces- 
sor. 

While  the  references  to  Major  Treat,  Sir  Ed- 
mund Andros  and  Gershom  Bulkeley,  may  ap- 
pear out  of  place  in  this  narrative,  they  have  been 
introduced  in  order  to  give  an  idea  of  three  men 

1  The  following  reference  to  the  above  incident  ap- 
pears in  Trumbull's  History  of  Connecticut:  "The 
trainbands  of  Hartford  assembled,  and,  as  the  tradition 
is,  while  captain  Wadsworth,  the  senior  officer,  was 
walking  in  front  of  the  companies,  and  exercising  the 
soldiers,  colonel  Fletcher  ordered  his  commission  and 
instructions  to  be  read.  Captain  Wadsworth  instantly 
commanded,  "Beat  the  drums;"  and  there  was  such  a 
roaring  of  them  that  nothing  else  could  be  heard. 
Colonel  Fletcher  commanded  silence.  But  no  sooner 
had  Bayard  made  an  attempt  to  read  again  than  Wads- 
worth  commands,  "Drum,  drum,  I  say."  The  drummers 
understood  their  business,  and  instantly  beat  up  with 
all  the  art  and  life  of  which  they  were  masters. 
''Silence,  silence,"  says  the  Colonel.  No  sooner  was 
there  a  pause,  than  Wadsworth  speaks  with  great  ear- 
nestness. "Drum,  drum,  I  say,"  and  turning  to  his  ex- 
cellency, said,  "If  I  am  interrupted  again  I  will  make  the 
sun  shine  through  you  in  a  moment."  He  spoke  with 
such  energy  in  his  voice  and  meaning  in  his  counte- 
nance, that  no  further  attempts  were  made  to  read  or 
enlist  men.  Such  numbers  of  people  collected  together, 
and  their  spirits  appeared  so  high,  that  the  Governor 
and  his  suit  judged  it  expedient,  soon  to  leave  the  town 
and  return  to  New  York."  This  story  is  contradicted  in 
a  pamphlet  published  in  1694  by  order  of  the  Governor 
and  Assistants. 


270  Wadsworth 

who  played  important  parts  in  the  interruption  of 
the  Charter  government  of  Connecticut  and  the 
resumption  of  same  when  it  was  known  that 
James  II.  was  dethroned.  By  yielding  to  au- 
thority that  could  have  been  resisted  only  by 
force,  which  would  have  been  considered  revolu- 
tionary and  treasonable,  Governor  Treat  saved 
the  lives  of  many  colonists,  as  well  as  their  prop- 
erty from  confiscation ;  while  by  taking  into 
his  hands  the  government  of  Connecticut  "for 
reasons  of  state,"  Sir  Edmund  Andros  made  an 
explanation  as  to  the  misinterpretation  of  the  co- 
lonial letter  at  Whitehall  unnecessary,  and  which 
if  explained  would  have  led  to  a  judgment 
against  the  Charter.  The  inquiries  under  quo 
warranto  were  pursued  no  further,  and  while  Ger- 
shom  Bulkeley,  the  third  member  of  the  group, 
considered  the  resumption  of  the  government  un- 
lawful1 on  account  of  his  belief  that  the  Charter 
was  voluntarily  surrendered,  his  arguments  failed 
to  impress  those  in  authority  in  England,  al- 
though it  was  not  until  after  Bulkeley  had 
retired  from  public  affairs  that  General  Fitz  John 
Winthrop  succeeded  in  obtaining  from  King 
William  and  Queen  Mary  a  letter  dated  June  21, 

1  See  his  "People's  Right  of  Election,"  published  in 
YO!.  I,,  and  "Will  and  Doom,"  in  Vol.  III.,  of  Collec- 
tions of  Connecticut  Historical  Society. 


Hiding  the  Charter  271 

1694,  addressed  to  the  Governor  and  Magistrates 
of  Connecticut,  explaining  and  restricting  Fletch- 
er's commission  already  referred  to,  and  which 
contained  the  following  encouraging  sentence: 
"And  the  said  Major  General  Fitz  John  Win- 
throp,  will  upon  his  arrival,  inform  you  of  our 
gracious  intention  to  continue  our  royal  protec- 
tion to  you  and  all  our  subjects  of  that,  our 
Colony,  and  particularly  in  what  may  relate  to 
the  preservation  of  the  peace,  welfare  and  se- 
curity of  the  same,  and  maintaining  your  just 
rights  and  privileges." 

Firm  in  his  faith  in  the  colony,  Gershom  Bulk- 
eley  expected  unqualified  obedience  to  authority 
and  ever  looked  with  distrust  upon  the  growing 
feeling  that  the  colonies,  which  were  by  their 
location  deprived  of  a  voice  in  the  councils  of 
England,  should  not  be  required  to  yield  allegi- 
ance to  the  crown.  He  served  as  a  surgeon 
throughout  the  King  Philip  war,  was  in  the  Nar- 
ragansett  fort  fight  with  Major  Treat,  and  in 
the  campaign  of  1676  was  wounded1  by  a  shot 
from  the  enemy  in  a  sudden  assault  made  by  a 
party  of  Indians.  Upon  the  close  of  the  war  he 
asked  to  be  dismissed  from  the  church  at  Weth- 
ersfield.  After  it  was  granted  he  moved  across 

1  See  Hubbard's  Narrative  of  the  Indian  Wars,  pub- 
lished in  Boston  March  29,  1677. 


272  Wadsworth 

the  river  to  Glastonbury,  commenced  to  prac- 
tice medicine  and  continued  it  for  over  thirty 
years.  Two  of  his  daughters  married  into  the 
Treat  family,  of  which  the  Governor  was  the 
most  prominent  member,  and  for  whom  Ger- 
shom  Bulkeley  always  had  an  unbounded  ad- 
miration, although  they  differed  in  the  matter 
of  public  policy,  as  is  shown  by  his  "Peo- 
ples Right  of  Election"  which  was  addressed  to 
him.  At  the  time  that  this  was  written,  Gershom 
Bulkeley  was  a  justice  of  the  peace,  having  been 
appointed  by  Governor  Andros.  Time,  however, 
closed  the  breach  and  long  before  his  death  in 
1713  those  who  followed  him  to  his  grave  looked 
upon  Gershom  Bulkeley,  not  as  an  uncom- 
promising royalist,  but  as  a  man  of  great  learn- 
ing and  extraordinary  ability,  and  who  by  his 
exemplary  life  proved  himself  a  man  who  never 
hesitated  to  express  an  opinion  or  live  up  to  his 
ideals. 

At  the  time  of  his  death,  Gershom  Bulkeley 
was  on  a  visit  to  his  daughter  Dorothy,  wife  of 
Thomas  Treat,  a  grandson  of  Richard  Treat,  one 
of  the  first  settlers  of  Wethersfield,  and  to  whose 
son  Richard  he  left  his  books1  and  manuscripts 
upon  medicine  and  chemistry.  Of  his  sons, 

1  A  number  of  his  books,  as  well  as  a  few  of  his  man- 
uscripts, are  in  the  library  of  Trinity  College,  Hartford. 


Hiding  the  Charter  273 

Charles  was  licensed  as  a  physician,  Peter  was 
lost  at  sea,  Edward  married  Dorothy  Talcott, 
and  John1  the  youngest,  after  graduating  at  Har- 
vard in  1699,  settled  at  Colchester,  being  the  first 
minister  of  that  town. 

Sir  Edmund  Andros  was  Governor  of  New 
York  from  1674  until  January  u,  1680-1,  when 
he  was  recalled  by  the  Duke  of  York  to  answer 

JThe  following  humorous  story  is  told  of  the  latter: 
"The  Rev.  Mr.  Bulkeley,  of  Colchester,  was  famous  in 
his  day  as  a  casuist  and  sage  counsellor.  A  church  in 
his  neighborhood  had  fallen  into  unhappy  divisions  and 
contentions,  which  they  were  unable  to  adjust  among 
themselves.  They  sent  one  of  their  number  to  John 
Bulkeley  for  his  advice  with  a  request  that  he  would 
send  it  in  writing.  It  so  happened  that  Mr.  Bulkeley 
had  a  farm  in  the  town,  upon  which  he  entrusted  a 
tenant  who  was  also  seeking  advice  of  a  different  char- 
acter. In  addressing  the  two  letters,  the  one  for  the 
church  was  directed  to  the  tenant,  and  the  one  for  the 
tenant  to  the  church.  The  church  members  convened 
to  hear  the  advice  which  was  to  settle  their  disputes. 
The  moderator  read  as  follows:  'You  will  see  to  the 
repair  of  the  fences,  that  they  be  built  high  and  strong, 
and  you  will  take  special  care  of  the  old  black  bull.' 
This  mystical  advice  puzzled  the  church  at  first,  but  an 
interpreter  among  the  more  discerning  ones  was  soon 
found,  who  said,  'Brethren,  this  is  the  very  advice  we 
most  need;  the  direction  to  repair  the  fences  is  to  ad- 
monish us  to  take  good  heed  in  the  admission  and  gov- 
ernment of  our  members.  We  must  guard  the  church 
by  our  master's  laws,  and  keep  out  strange  cattle  from 
the  fold.  And  we  must  in  a  particular  manner  set  a 
watchful  guard  over  the  devil,  the  old  black  bull,  who 
has  done  so  much  hurt  of  late.'  All  perceived  the 
wisdom  and  fitness  of  Mr.  Bulkeley's  advice,  and  re- 
solved to  be  governed  by  it.  The  consequence  was,  all 
the  animosities  subsided,  and  harmony  was  restored." 


274  Wadsworth 

charges  of  mis-government  and  embezzlement 
which  were  preferred  against  him.  During  the 
winter  of  1677-8  he  was  also  in  England  on  a 
visit  and  was  knighted  by  Charles  II.  The 
charges  referred  to  were  not  serious  enough  to 
forfeit  the  favor  of  his  patron,  as  in  1682  Andros 
was  named  as  a  gentleman  of  the  King's  privy 
chamber.  The  following  year  the  Island  of  Al- 
derney  was  granted  to  him  and  Lady  Mary  An- 
dros for  ninety-nine  years,  and  in  1685  he  was 
made  a  colonel  in  Her  Royal  Highness  Princess 
Anne  of  Denmark's  regiment  of  horse,  while  he 
also  commanded  a  troop  of  horse  against  the 
Duke  of  Monmouth  in  the  rebellion  which  ter- 
minated at  Sedgemore,  July  18,  1685. 

On  June  3,  1686,  James  II.  commissioned  Sir 
Edmund  Andros  as  "Captain  General  and  Gov- 
ernor in  Chief  in  and  over  the  Colonies  of  Massa- 
chusetts Bay  and  New  Plymouth,  the  Provinces 
of  New  Hampshire  and  Maine,  and  the  Narra- 
gansett  country  or  King's  Province."  On  Sep- 
tember 13  of  the  same  year  additional  powers 
and  instructions  to  the  new  Governor  were 
issued  from  James  II.'s  Court  at  Windsor.  They 
required  him  to  demand  the  surrender  of  the 
Charter  of  Rhode  Island  and  the  Providence 
Plantation  against  which  a  writ  of  quo  warranto 
had  been  issued,  and  also  said  that  "in  case  it 


SIR    EDMUND  ANDROS 


Hiding  the  Charter  277 

shall  happen,  that  upon  a  like  writ  of  quo  war- 
ranto,  issued  against  the  Charter  of  our  govern- 
ment and  company  of  our  Colony  of  Connecticut, 
they  shall  be  induced  to  make  surrender  of  their 
Charter,  our  will  and  pleasure  is,  and  we  do 
hereby  authorize  and  empower  you,  in  our  name, 
to  receive  such  surrender,  and  to  take  our  said 
Colony  of  Connecticut  under  your  government, 
in  the  same  manner  as  before  expressed." 

July  15,  1685,  Edward  Randolph,  the  collector 
of  His  Majesty's  customs  in  New  England,  filed 
with  the  Lord  Commissioners  for  the  Plantations 
the  following  articles  to  support  a  writ  of  quo 
warranto  against  the  Connecticut  Charter: 

"Art.  I.  That  they  have  made  laws  contrary  to  the 
laws  of  England." 

"Art.  2.  They  impose  fines  upon  the  inhabitants, 
and  convert  them  to  their  own  use." 

"Art.  3.  They  enforce  an  oath  of  fidelity  upon  the 
inhabitants  without  administering  the  oath  of  suprem- 
acy and  allegiance,  as  in  their  Charter  is  directed." 

"Art.  4.  They  deny  to  the  inhabitants  the  exercise 
of  the  religion  of  the  church  of  England,  arbitrarily 
fining  those  who  refuse  to  come  to  their  congrega- 
tional assemblies." 

"Art.  5.  His  Majesty's  subjects,  inhabiting  there, 
cannot  obtain  justice  in  the  courts  of  that  colony." 

"Art.  6.  They  discourage  and  exclude  from  the 
government  all  gentlemen  of  known  loyalty,  and  keep 
it  in  the  hands  of  the  independent  party  in  the  Colony." 


278  Wadsworth 

Proofs  to  sustain  the  first  five  of  the  above 
articles  were  taken  out  of  the  Colony  Law  Book 
printed  at  Cambridge  in  1673.  Under  these 
charges  a  quo  warranto  was  in  July,  1685,  issued 
against  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Connecti- 
cut. Another  followed  in  October  of  the  same 
year.  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  latter,  to- 
gether with  a  copy  of  a  letter  to  the  Colony  from 
Ri:  Normansell,  Secondary  to  the  Sheriffs  of 
London : 

"Oct.  6,  1685.  James  the  Second,  by  the  grace  of 
God,  of  England,  Scotland,  France  and  Ireland  King, 
Defender  of  the  Faith,  &c.  To  the  Sheriffs  of  Lon- 
don: Peace.  We  require  you  to  warn  the  Governor 
and  Company  of  the  English  Colony  of  Connecticut 
in  New  England  in  America,  to  appear  before  us  wher- 
ever we  shall  then  be  in  England,  from  the  Day  of 
Easter  in  fifteen  days,  to  answer  by  what  warrant  they 
claim  to  have  and  use  diverse  liberties,  privileges  and 
franchises  within  the  said  Colony,  vis:  in  the  Parish 
of  St.  Michael  in  Cornhill,  London,  where  they  are 
impeached,  and  there  they  shall  have  this  writ.  Teste: 
George  Lord  Jeffries  at  Westminster,  the  8th  day  of 
July  in  the  first  year  of  our  reign — by  the  Judge  in 
the  first  year  of  James  the  Second. 

For  the  King, 

Robert  Sawyer  Knight,  now  Astry." 

Attorney  General  for  our  lord  the  King, 
prosecutes  this  writ  upon  the  quo  warranto 
for  the  same  lord  and  king." 


Hiding  the  Charter  279 

London,  Oct.  6th,  1685. 

"Gentlemen.  This  day  was  delivered  to  my  hands  (as 
I  am  Secondary  to  the  Sheriffs  of  London)  a  writt  of 
Quo  Warranto,  issuing  out  of  the  Crown  Office  of  the 
Court  of  Kings  Bench  at  Westminster,  against  you  the 
Governor  and  Company  of  the  English  Colony  of  Con- 
necticut, in  New  England  in  America,  requiring  your 
Appearance  before  His  Majesty,  whersoever  he  shall 
then  be  in  England,  from  the  day  of  Easter  in  fifteen 
days  to  answer  unto  our  Lord,  the  King,  by  what 
Warrant  you  Claime  to  have  and  use  divers  Liberties, 
privileges  and  Franchises  within  the  said  Colony,  viz: 
in  the  Parish  of  St.  Michael  Cornhill,  London,  of 
which  you  are  impeacht,  and  that  you  may  not  be 
ignorant  of  any  part  of  the  contents  of  the  said  writt, 
I  have  enclosed  sent  you  a  true  coppy  of  the  same  (in 
his  Majesty's  name)  requiring  your  appearance  to  it, 
and  acquainting  you  that  in  default  thereof,  you  will 
be  proceeded  Against  to  the  Outlawry,  whereby  the 
Liberties,  privileges  and  Franchises  you  Claime  and 
now  enjoy,  will  be  forfeited  to  the  King,  and  your 
Charter  vacated  and  Annulled.  Of  this  Gent,  please 
to  take  notice,  from  your  humble  servant. 

Ri:    Normansell." 

To  the  Governor  and  Company  of 
the  English  Colony  of  Connecticut  in 
New   England   in  America." 

Both  of  the  quo  warrantos1  were  served 
on  John  Allyn  and  John  Talcott,  two  of  the 

1  Two  of  these  quo  warrantos,  and  one  notification 
from  Richard  Normansell,  are  preserved  in  Volume  I 
of  the  Original  Papers  in  the  Connecticut  Department 
of  State  and  copies  of  all  three  of  the  writs  and  the 


280  Wadsworth 

keepers  of  the  Charter,  by  Edward  Randolph, 
about  midnight  on  July  20,  1686,  but  they 
were  void  as  the  time  of  their  return  -had  elapsed. 
Notwithstanding  that  fact  the  Colony  wrote 
William  Whiting,  its  agent  in  England,  to  pre- 
sent a  petition  and  an  appeal  to  the  King  request- 
ing the  recall  of  the  quo  warrantos  and  the  con- 
tinuation of  their  Charter  privileges. 

During  the  summer  and  autumn  of  1686, 
Joseph  Dudley,  who  was  subsequently  a  member 
of  Edmund  Andros'  Council,  and  Edward  Ran- 
dolph, wrote  the  Governor  and  General  Court  of 
Connecticut,  urging  them  to  surrender  the  Char- 
ter and  be  annexed  to  Massachusetts,  even  going 
so  far  as  to  send  Major  John  Pynchon  and  Cap- 
tain Waite  Winthrop  to  consult  with  them  on 
the  subject;  while  Governor  Dongan  of  New 
York  was  equally  persistent  in  urging  them  to 
be  annexed  to  his  government.  No  advances 
were  made  to  either  and  such  was  the  condition 
of  affairs  when  Sir  Edmund  Andros  landed  in 
Boston  on  December  20.  His  first  council  was 
held  on  December  22,  when  the  following  letter 

three  notifications  are  preserved  in  the  letter  book  of 
the  Colony  in  the  same  Department.  Two  of  the 
original  writs  are  thus  endorsed:  "This  received  of 
Edward  Randolph  Esq.  upon  the  2Oth  of  July,  1686, 
about  12  or  one  in  the  morning — pr  us, — John  Talcott, 
Asst.  John  Allyn,  Secry." 


Hiding  the  Charter^  281 

was  addressed  to  Robert  Treat,  Governor  of  His 
Majesty's  Colony  of  Connecticut: 

"Boston,  22nd  December,  1686.  Sir.  This  is  to 
acquaint  you  that  his  Majesty  having  been  pleased  to 
send  me  to  the  Government  of  New  England,  of  which 
you  are  a  part,  I  arrived  here  on  the  2Oth  instant, 
where  I  find  all  very  well  disposed  for  his  Majesty's 
service;  and  his  Majesty's  Letters  Patent  to  me  for 
the  said  Government  being  then  published  were  re- 
ceived with  suitable  Demonstration. 

"I  am  commanded  and  authorized  by  his  Majesty, 
at  my  arrival  in  these  parts,  to  receive  in  his  name  the 
surrender  of  your  Charter  (if  tendered  by  you)  and  to 
take  you  into  my  present  care  and  charge  as  other 
parts  of  the  Government,  assuring  his  Majesty's  good 
subjects  of  his  countenance  and  protection  in  all  things 
relating  to  his  service  and  their  welfare. 

"I  have  only  to  add  that  I  shall  be  ready  and  glad 
to  do  my  duty  accordingly,  and  therefore  desire  to 
hear  from  you  as  soon  as  may  be,  and  remain  your 
very  affectionate  friend,  E.  Andros." 

Edward  Randolph  also  accompanied  this  let- 
ter with  another  quo  warranto  and  the  following 
letter: 

"Boston,  Dec.  23,  1686.  Gentlemen.  His  Majesty 
hath  commanded  me  to  serve  another  writ  of  quo  war- 
ranto upon  you — it  is  returnable  the  first  of  next  Term. 
You  find  by  a  Letter  from  his  excellence  Sir  Edmund 
Andros  herewith  sent  you,  that  as  yet  a  door  is  open 
for  you,  and  tis  your  own  fault  if  you  fail  of  the  enjoy- 
ments and  indulgencies  which  his  Majesty  hath  been 
graciously  pleased  to  grant  to  the  Colonies  of  New 
Plymouth  and  Rhode  Island  now  annexed  to  this 
Government. 


282  Wadsworlh 

"By  serving  of  this  quo  warranto,  and  you  not  ap- 
pearing to  defend  yourselves,  judgment  will  be  entered 
against  you  on  your  non-appearance,  so  that  it  is  not 
in  your  choice  how  next  to  dispose  of  yourselves.  You 
have  no  way  to  make  yourselves  happy  but  by  an  early 
application  to  his  Excellence,  which  is  all  &  more  than 
you  might  expect  to  hear  from  me,  with  whom  you 
have  so  often  and  so  unkindly  trifled.  However  I  will 
not  be  disoblidged,  but  am,  Gentlemen,  your  humble 
servant,  Ed.  Randolph." 

Randolph  expected  that  Andros'  letter  and  the 
quo  warranto  which  accompanied  it  would  result 
in  a  surrender,  as  he  wrote  Major  Pynchon  of 
Springfield  the  following-  week  that  he  was  well 
assured  that  the  physic  would  operate,  although 
he  heard  that  the  little  quacks  in  Hartford  were 
endeavoring  to  divert  their  coming  under  the 
government  of  Massachusetts.  Instead  of  sur- 
rendering the  Charter  as  anticipated,  Governor 
Treat  called  a  special  meeting  of  the  General 
Court  at  Hartford  on  January  26,  1686.  It  de- 
cided to  leave  the  matter  to  the  Governor  and 
Council,  who  upon  the  same  date  dispatched  the 
following  letter  to  the  Earl  of  Sunderland,  Sec- 
retary of  State : 

Hartford,  26  Jan.,  1686-7. 
"Right  Hon. 

The  occasion  of  these  lines  are  to  inform  your  lord- 
ship, that  we  have  formerly  sent  several  addresses  to 
be  presented  to  his  Majesty;  but  have  no  return  that 


Hiding  the  Charter  283 

they  ever  came  to  his  Majesty's  view.  The  last  year 
two  writs  of  quo-warranto  were  served  upon  us  by  Mr. 
Randolph,  which  were  issued  out  of  the  Crown-office 
of  the  court  of  King's  Bench  at  Westminster,  but 
served  upon  us  after  the  time  of  appearance  had 
elapsed,  as  we  understand  it;  But  then  we  prepared  an 
address  to  his  Majesty,  and  appointed  Mr.  William 
Whiting,  a  merchant  in  London,  to  be  our  attorney,  to 
present  our  address  to  his  Majesty:  And,  in  case  we 
should  be  called  upon  to  answer  before  his  Majesty,  or 
any  court  or  judges,  by  what  authority  we  hold,  possess 
and  enjoy  divers  rights,  privileges  and  franchises,  that 
he  might  on  our  behalfe  make  answer  thereto.  And 
since  that,  December  last  past,  another  quo-warranto 
was  served  upon  us,  requiring  our  appearance  before 
eights  days  of  the  purification  of  the  blessed  virgin 
Mary;  which  is  so  sudden,  by  reason  of  our  remoteness, 
and  the  sharpness  of  the  winter  season,  that  we  cannot 
make  such  suitable  return  as  we  ought:  Yet  we  have 
again  requested  and  empowered  Mr.  Whiting  to  appear 
on  our  behalf,  if  we  must  come  to  answer,  so  that,  by 
reason  of  our  non-appearance  or  silence,  we  may  not 
be  proceeded  against  to  an  outlawry,  or  forfeiture  of 
our  liberties  and  privileges. 

May  it  please  your  honour,  we  are  his  Majesty's 
loyal  subjects,  and  we  are  heartily  desirous  that  we 
may  continue  in  the  same  station  that  we  are  in,  if  it 
may  consist  with  his  princely  wisdom  to  continue  us 
so:  But,  if  his  Majesty's  royal  purpose  be  otherwise  to 
dispose  of  us,  we  shall,  as  in  duty  bound,  submit  to  his 
royal  commands;  and,  if  it  be  to  conjoin  us  with  the 
other  colonies  and  provinces,  under  Sir  Edmund 
Andros,  his  Majesty's  present  governor,  it  will  be  more 
pleasin?  than  to  be  joined  with  any  other  province. 


284  Wadsworth 

Sir:  We  pray  your  honour's  pardon  for  this  address, 
which  is  only  occasioned  for  fear  any  mishap  should 
befal  our  former  letters,  requesting  your  honour  to 
acquaint  his  Majesty,  that  we  are  his  obedient  and  loyal 
subjects,  and  shall  so  approve  ourselves,  notwithstand- 
ing any  misrepresentation  that  may  be  made  of  us; 
who  are  &c.  Robert  Treat,  Governor. 

By  order  of  the  General  Court, 

John  Allyn,  Secretary." 

At  the  same  time  Governor  Andros  was  also 
advised  that  the  Colony  declined  to  give  up  the 
Charter.  He  expressed  his  surprise  in  a  letter  to 
Governor  Treat  that  the  Colony  required  any 
other  "argument  than  his  Majesty's  own  words 
to  induce  compliance,"  and  followed  it  with  an- 
other note  in  which  he  said: 

"While  you  have  no  more  regard  to  reiterated  quo 
warrantos  nor  gracious  opportunities  by  his  Majesty's 
commands  to  me  as  signified  to  you  at  my  arrival,  but 
still  act  with  the  most  obstinate  &  adverse  to  his  Maj- 
esty's service,  you  thereby  hazard  the  advantages  that 
might  be  to  your  Colony  and  totally  your  own — which 
others  even  of  this  Colony  have  prevented  by  a  con- 
siderable part  of  them  now  in  place  submitting  and 
leaving  the  refractory — and  unless  you  shall  do  your 
part  without  delay,  you  will  not  only  make  me  in- 
capable to  serve  you  but  occasion  the  contrary — but  do 
hope  better  of  you  and  the  whole  Colony  by  your 
good  ensample  and  loyal  acting  in  your  station  ere  too 
late." 

This  communication  was  carried  to  Hartford 
by  Captain  Nicholson  and  was  submitted  to  the 


Hiding  the  Charter  285 

General  Court  at  a  special  meeting  held  on 
March  30.  At  the  time  there  was  also  a  differ- 
ence of  opinion  between  some  of  the  leading  men 
in  the  Colony  in  reference  to  the  contest  that  was 
being  carried  on  over  the  Charter.  A  number 
thought  that  it  would  end  in  a  victory  for  the 
King  and  that  by  making  a  voluntary  surrender  it 
would  be  possible  to  secure  better  terms.  Others 
were  of  the  opinion  that  if  the  Court  still  held  out 
the  Colony  might  be  divided  by  the  river,  the 
Western  half  being  annexed  to  New  York  as  de- 
sired by  Governor  Dongan,  and  the  Eastern  por- 
tion to  Massachusetts.  Governor  Treat  was 
supposed  to  be  one  of  those,  while  John  Allyn 
submitted  the  following  communication  at  this 
meeting: 
"To  the  Honerd  Genii  Court. 

Gentm,  Vpon  the  reasons  which  haue  been  layd 
before  you,  with  many  more  that  might  be  giuen,  we 
doe  declare  that  we  do  verily  belieue  it  is  for  the 
Advantage  of  this  Court  Freely;  and  voluntarily  to 
submitt  yorselves  to  his  Maties:  disspose,  and  not  to 
begin  or  hold  any  further  Suites  in  Law  with  his 
Mats,  which  in  noe  wise  can  be  expected  will  promote 
or  profitt  or  wealfare. 

And  for  or  own  parts,  we  doe  declare,  and  desire  you 
would  take  notice,  we  are  for  answering  his  Matis: 
expectation,  by  a  present  submission,  and  are  against 
all  further  prosecutions  or  engagements  by  Law  Suites 
in  opposition  to  his  Mates:  known  pleasr:  for  or  sub- 
mission. 30th  March  1687.  John  Talcott, 

John  Allyn, 
Samll  Talcott." 


286  Wadsworth 

Of  the  signers  of  the  above  communication 
John  Allyn  and  John  Talcott  were  two  of  the 
keepers  of  the  Charter,  and  that  Andros  was  ad- 
vised of  what  was  being  done  is  shown  by  a 
letter  which  Allyn  wrote  on  the  same  day  to 
Fitz  John  Winthrop,  who  although  living  in  New 
London  had  been  appointed  as  one  of  the  Council 
of  New  England  before  Connecticut  was  annexed. 
In  it  he  said : 

"I  have  hoped  that  this  time  we  should  have  been 
ready  to  have  joined  our  divisions  and  to  have  made 
an  entire  body,  but  by  our  statesmen  it  is  thought  not 
convenient  yet,  and  they  will  not  be  moved  beyond 
their  pace;  notwithstanding  the  advantage  that  offers 
to  encourage  a  present  union,  they  will  not  be  per- 
suaded to  it.  It  looks  so  like  a  giving  away  that  which 
is  precious  to  them,  which  they  can  rather  be  passive 
than  active  in  parting  with  it;  and  also  those  difficulties 
that  threaten  the  standing  out,  as  the  procuring  his 
majesty's  displeasure,  making  the  terms  the  harder, 
and  losing  the  little  share  we  possibly  might  have  in 
the  government  if  cheerfully  submitted  to,  seems  of 
little  weight  with  too  many.  The  result  of  present 
considerations  are  that  we  must  stand  as  we  are  until 
his  Majesty  farther  dispose  of  us,  and  all  that  is  gained 
is  our  gentlemen  rather  choose  to  be  conjoined  to 
Massachusetts  than  with  any  other  province  or  colony." 

After  Governor  Andros'  letter  was  read  at  the 
special  meeting  the  General  Court  voted  that  it 
did  not  see  sufficient  reason  to  vary  from  the 
answer  given  in  January,  while  it  also  ordered 


Hiding  the  Charter  287 

that  the  following  letter1  be  drawn  up  and 
signed  by  the  Secretary  in  the  name  of  the  Court 
and  directed  to  his  Excellency  Sir  Edmund  An- 
dros: 

"The  Governor  and  Council  to  Gov.  Andros. 

Hartford,  March  30,  1687. 
Right  Honble  Sir: 

According  as  or  Governor  informed  Capt.  Niccolson, 
we  conveened  this  day  by  or  sd  Governors  order,  who 
told  us  that  the  occasion  of  our  meeting  was,  your 
Excellency  had  signified  to  him,  by  advice  of  his  Maties 
Councill  that  you  had  granted  us  another  opportunity 
of  making  suitable  and  dutifull  resolves  concerning  or 
surrender.  For  yr  Eccelencie's  and  their  care  of  us 
and  love  to  us,  we  return  you  or  hearty  thanks,  but 
we  humbly  request  that  we  may  without  offence  in- 
form your  Honor  that  as  matters  are  circumstanced 
with  us  we  cannot  vary  from  what  we  informed  your 
Excelency  in  or  letters  of  January  26  past,  by  reason 
we  have  by  or  severall  addresses  formerly  sent  to  his 
Matie  left  orselves  so  fully  to  be  guided  and  dissposed 
by  his  princely  wisdome,  and  have  not  reced  any  re- 
turn or  direction  from  his  matie  since,  and  therefore 
we  request  that  a  good  neighborhood  and  an  amicable 
correspondence  may  be  continued  between  your  Excel- 
ency and  ys  Colony  till  his  Maties  father  pleasure  be 

1  The  following  sentence  appeared  in  the  original 
draft  of  this  letter  but  was  crossed  out  before  being 
copied  and  transmitted  to  Boston: 

"And  then  when  we  are  commanded  by  his  Matie  to 
surrender  orselves  to  your  Excelencies  government, 
and  to  be  united  wth  or  neighbors  in  yt  government, 
we  shall  be  as  loyall  and  dutifull  as  any,  we  hope,  and 
as  readily  submit  orselves  to  your  Excelency." 


288  Wadsworth 

made  known  to  us.  Which  wth  or  best  respects  and 
service  to  your  Excelency,  is  all  at  present  from  your 
humble  servants, 

ye  Govr  &  Company  of  his  Maties  Colony 
of  Connecticutt." 

Andros'  feelings  upon  the  receipt  of  this  letter 
can  be  better  imagined  than  described,  but  noth- 
ing more  was  heard  from  him  on  the  subject  until 
the  day  after  the  meeting  of  the  General  Court, 
held  in  Hartford,  June  15,  1687,  and  which  was 
called  by  the  Governor  in  order  to  lay  before  it 
the  information  that  he  had  received  from  Wil- 
liam Whiting  as  to  their  affairs  in  England. 
During  this  meeting  the  assistants  and  deputies 
who  in  March  defeated  the  recommendations  of 
John  Allyn,  John  Talcott  and  Samuel  Talcott 
were  very  outspoken  and  insisted  that  the  Char- 
ter should  no  longer  be  left  in  charge  of  the  Sec- 
retary.1 Several  members  also  desired  that  the 

1  So  far  as  can  be  gleaned  from  the  Colonial  Records, 
John  Allyn  had  the  charters  in  his  possession  as  on 
October  9,  1662,  the  General  Court  made  the  follow- 
ing order:  "This  Court  doth  order  Lt.  Jo:  Allyn  to 
shew  Capt.  Varlet  the  Charter  granted  to  this  Colony, 
and  to  inform  him  that  it  is  desired  by  the  Court  that 
the  Honorable  Lord  Stevesant  would  not  in  any  wise 
incumber  or  molest  his  Ma'ties  subjects  comprehended 
within  ye  extent  of  our  Pattent  by  any  impositions, 
that  thereby  more  than  probable  inconveniences  may 
be  prevented."  Captain  Varlet  (Varleth)  was  a  brother- 
in-law  of  Governor  Stuyvesant  and  an  officer  in  the 
employ  of  the  Dutch  West  India  Company. 


Hiding  the  Charter  289 

Charter  be  brought  into  the  Court  Chamber. 
The  Secretary  accordingly  sent  for  it  and  as  soon 
as  the  messenger  returned  the  box  was  opened 
and  the  parchment,  over  which  there  was  so 
much  contention,  was  exhibited  to  the  Court. 
The  Governor  then  bade  him  put  it  in  the  box, 
lay  it  on  the  table  and  leave  the  key  in  the  box.1 
The  box  was  still  on  the  table  when  the  Court 
adjourned. 

After  a  number  of  the  assistants  and  deputies 
had  retired  from  the  chamber,  Gov.  Treat  and 
Deputy  Governor  Bishop  held  a  conference  with 
those  who  insisted  upon  retaining  the  Charter 
until  a  judgment  was  rendered  against  it,  while 
Andrew  Leete,2  as  I  was  afterwards  told  by  my 

1  The  following  paragraph  in  reference  to  same  ap- 
pears in  the  record  of  the  meeting:  "Sundry  of  the 
Court  desireing  that  the  Patent  or  Charter  might  be 
brought  into  the  Court,  the  Secretary  sent  for  it,  and 
informed  the  Governor  and  Court  that  he  had  the 
Charter,  and  shewed  it  to  the  Court;  and  the  Governor 
bid  him  put  it  into  the  box  againe  and  lay  it  on  the 
table  and  leave  the  key  in  the  box,  which  he  did  forth- 
with." 

'Andrew  Leete  possessed  a  liberal  portion  of  the 
excellencies  of  his  father.  He  was  early  appointed 
commissioner  or  justice  of  the  peace,  and  had  principal 
concern  in  managing  the  affairs  of  Guilford.  In  1677 
he  was  elected  an  assistant  and  was  annually  re-elected 
until  his  death  October  31,  1702.  Rev.  Thomas  Rug- 
gles,  minister  of  Guilford  from  1729  to  1770  in  his 
History  of  Guilford  says,  "It  is  said  and  believed  that 
Andrew  Leet  was  the  principal  hand  in  securing  and 
preserving  the  charter  when  it  was  just  upon  the  point 


290  Wadsworth 

brother,  asked  that  the  duplicate  be  sent  for, 
which  was  done.  He  also  insisted  that  the  Char- 
ters should  be  separated,  one  remaining  in  Hart- 
ford and  the  other  taken  to  New  Haven  or  an 
adjoining  town. 

Upon  the  suggestion  of  the  Governor,  the 
Charter,  which  was  always  referred  to  as  the 
original,  being  the  one  that  was  first  received 
from  England,  was  handed  to  Andrew  Leete  with 
instructions  to  take  it  to  Guilford  and  conceal  it 
either  in  his  house  or  in  one  of  the  hiding  places 
of  the  stone  house1  built  by  Henry  Whitfield. 

of  being  taken  and  that  it  was  in  his  house  that  it 
found  a  safe  retreat  until  better  times."  Leete  appears 
to  have  been  a  man  of  infirm  health,  most  of  his  life 
subject  to  fits  of  epilepsy,  which  impaired  his  useful- 
ness. 

1  The  stone  house  of  Guilford  is  said  to  have  been 
built  in  1639  by  Henry  Whitfield,  and  is  supposed  to  be 
the  oldest  dwelling  house  now  standing  in  the  United 
States.  According  to  tradition,  the  stone  of  which  the 
house  was  built,  was  brought  by  the  Indians  on  hand 
barrows,  across  the  swamp  from  Griswold's  rocks,  and 
an  ancient  causeway  across  the  swamp  is  shown  as  the 
path  employed  for  the  purpose.  The  house  consists 
of  two  stories  and  an  attic.  The  walls  are  three  feet 
thick.  The  walls  of  the  front  and  back  of  the  house 
terminate  at  the  floor  of  the  attic,  and  the  rafters  lie 
upon  them.  The  angle  of  the  roof  is  60  degrees,  mak- 
ing the  base  and  sides  equal.  At  the  end  of  the  wing, 
by  the  chimney,  is  a  recess,  which  must  have  been 
intended  as  a  place  of  concealment.  The  interior  wall 
has  the  appearance  of  touching  the  chimney,  like  the 
wall  at  the  northwest  end.  But  the  removal  of  a  board 
discovers  two  closets  which  project  beyond  the  lower 
part  of  the  building. — Smith's  History  of  Guilford. 


Kb*  T  '•    I 


Hiding  the  Charter  293 

This  was  done,  I  being  detailed  the  same  night 
to  accompany  him,  although  at  the  time  I  did 
not  know  what  he  had  concealed  in  the  box  under 
his  cloak.  The  duplicate  Charter  was  intrusted 
to  a  Committee  composed  of  Nathaniel  Stanley, 
my  brother  John  Wadsworth  and  Samuel 
Wyllys,  one  of  the  original  keepers.  Nathaniel 
Stanley  and  my  brother  took  the  Charter  to  Sam- 
uel Wyllys'  house.  As  he  was  absent  in  the 
West  Indies,  they  gave  it  to  his  wife  and  re- 
mained until  she  placed  it  in  the  iron  chest  in 
which  the  Wyllys  family  kept  its  papers. 

The  day  after  the  Court  adjourned  Edward 
Randolph  arrived  at  Hartford  with  the  following 
letter  from  Governor  Andros : 

"Boston,  June  13,  1687.  By  my  several  letters  and 
advice  from  England  I  am  assured  that  by  this  time, 
there  would  be  an  issue  put  to,  and  judgment  entered 
upon  the  quo  warranto  against  your  Charter,  and  soon 
expect  his  Majesty's  commands  accordingly;  of  which 
I  doubt  not  but  you  are  advised,  as  many  of  your 
friends  in  these  parts,  who  have  prevailed  with  me  on 
your  Assembly's  meeting,  to  express  my  inclinations. 
Still  not  to  be  wanting  for  your  welfare,  if  you  yet 
give  me  opportunity  by  accepting  his  Majesty's  favor, 
so  graciously  offered  you,  in  a  present  compliance  and 
surrender,  and  not  with  vain  hopes  to  delay  until 
execution  be  served  upon  you,  when  too  late  to  acquit 
yourselves  of  your  Duty  to  his  Majesty  and  trust  re- 
posed in  you  by  the  Colony,  which,  being  of  such  im- 


294  Wadsworfh 

portance,    deserves   your   best   considerations    and    re- 
solves accordingly. 

"This  is  by  Edward  Randolph,  Esq.,  to  whom  you 
may  give  entire  credence  in  anything  relating  to  this 
matter — from  your  very  affectionate  friend,  E. 
Andros." 

It  was  delivered  to  Secretary  Allyn,  who  sent 
the  following  reply: 

"Hartford,  June  18,  1687.  May  it  please  your  Excel- 
lency. Your  letters  by  Esq're  Randolph  and  Capt. 
Davis  have  arrived,  and  we  are  sorry  they  came  too 
late  to  reach  our  General  Court,  who  adjourned  the 
evening  before  the  arrival  of  those  gentlemen,  and 
though  by  what  we  took  notice  of  their  minds,  we  con- 
clude they  would  not  have  altered  or  varied  anything 
from  what  in  their  former  letters  they  wrote  unto  you, 
for  at  their  last  session  they  resolved  to  continue  in 
the  station  they  are  in  till  his  Majesty's  pleasure  be 
made  known  to  them  for  a  change,  and  they  having  so 
declared,  it  is  not  in  our  power  to  vary  or  alter  what 
they  have  so  resolved — therefore  according  to  the  cir- 
cumstances we  stand  under  we  cannot  make  a  surren- 
der of  our  Charter  at  present,  but  must  wait  his  Maj- 
esty's pleasure  for  our  farther  dispose,  which  shall  be 
readily  submitted  unto  by  us — we  thankfully  acknowl- 
edge your  Honors  favor  to  us,  and  care  over  us,  and 
earnestly  your  candid  acceptation  of  this  return,  and 
a  favorable  construction  of  our  intentions  therein,  who 
are  resolved  through  the  help  of  Almighty  God  to  ap- 
prove ourselves  his  Majesty's  loyal  subjects,  and  your 
Honors  most  affectionate  friends  &  humble  servants, 
the  Governor  and  Council  of  his  Majesty's  Colony  of 
Connecticut — pr  order  signed  John  Allyn,  Secy." 


Hiding  the  Charter  295 

Nothing  more  was  heard  from  Governor  An- 
dros  until  the  following  October,  but  during  the 
interval  several  communications  were  received 
from  the  London  agent,  William  Whiting.  In 
June  he  wrote  that  he  had  delivered  the  letter 
addressed  to  the  Earl  of  Sunderland,  but  that 
he  had  been  unable  to  learn  as  to  what  action 
had  been  taken  in  connection  with  it,  while  at 
the  same  time  he  advised  the  Colony  that  An- 
dros  had  not  made  any  return  of  the  quo  war- 
ranto,  but  that  he  was  of  the  opinion  that  the 
Charter  would  be  surrendered.  On  June  14  and 
again  on  August  9,  Whiting  wrote  that  there  was 
a  rule  of  the  Court  passed  for  appearance  on  the 
last  day  of  the  term  or  judgment  would  be 
passed  against  the  Connecticut  Charter,  "but  no 
information  being  then,  nor  since,  given  in  against 
the  Collony,  the  case  stands  as  it  did:  whether 
any  will  be  put  in  between  this  and  next  terme, 
cannot  learne."  Afterwards  it  was  discovered 
that  Whiting's  inability  to  learn  anything  came 
about  through  the  construction  placed  by  the 
Committee  on  Trade  and  Foreign  Plantations 
upon  a  paragraph  in  the  letter  to  the  Earl  of 
Sunderland.  It  made  the  following  report  to  His 
Majesty: 

"May  it  please  your  Majesty,  Wee  haue  considered  a 
letter  directed  to  the  Right  Honble  Earle  of  Sunderland 


296  Wadsworth 

from  the  Generall  Court  of  your  Majesty's  Colony  of 
Connecticut  in  New  England,  wherein  they  represent 
their  desires  to  continue  in  the  same  Station  they  are 
at  present,  if  it  shall  so  please  your  Majesty,  But  that 
if  your  Majesty  shall  thinke  fit  otherwise  to  dispose 
of  them,  they  do  in  all  duty  declare  their  readiness  to 
submit  to  your  Royall  commands;  Hoping  that  your 
Majesty  may  be  more  inclined  to  annex  them  to  the 
Government  of  New  England,  then  to  any  other, 
Whereupon  Wee  most  humbly  offer  our  opinion,  That 
your  Majesty  be  pleased  to  send  your  instructions  to 
Sir  Edmund  Andros,  forthwith  to  signify  your  Maj- 
esty's Good  liking  and  accepetance  of  their  dutiful  Sub- 
mission, and  to  take  them  under  his  government." 

His  Majesty  approved  and  ordered  that  the 
Earl  of  Sunderland,  as  Secretary  of  the  State, 
cause  instructions  to  be  prepared  for  his  signa- 
ture and  transmitted  to  Sir  Edmund  Andros  for 
taking  the  Colony  of  Connecticut  under  his  gov- 
ernment. The  first  advice  that  Connecticut  re- 
ceived of  this  action  came  in  a  letter  from  Gov. 
Dongan  of  New  York,  who  on  October  4,  1687, 
wrote  the  General  Court,  "I  lately  had  a  letter 
from  Whitehall  that  tells  me  Governor  Treat  and 
Mr.  Allyn  had  writ  thither  desiring  the  Colony  of 
Connecticut  might  be  added  to  Boston  and  Sir 
Edmund  Andros."  This  letter  arrived  in  Hart- 
ford prior  to  the  meeting  of  the  General  Court  on 
October  13,  which  after  transacting  the  regular 
business  that  came  before  it,  ordered  that  "the 


Hiding  the  Charter  297 

Governor  and  Dept.  Governor  and  so  many  of  the 
Assistants  as  may  make  seven  to  be  a  committee 
or  councill  in  behalfe  of  the  Generall  Court  in 
the  intervals  of  the  Generall  Court,  to  transact 
such  publique  concerns  as  shall  fall  in."  While 
to  all  appearances  this  was  the  last  meeting  un- 
der the  Charter,  the  members  after  granting  the 
deputies  their  usual  salary  for  attendance  sepa- 
rated without  making  a  motion  to  adjourn. 

Before  taking  up  the  letter  which  preceded 
Sir  Edmund  Andros'  visit  to  Hartford,  I  wish 
to  state  that  while  the  Governor  has  been  looked 
upon  in  New  England  and  especially  in  Con- 
necticut as  tyrant,  I  have  never  had  other  than 
a  friendly  feeling  for  him.  Prior  to  coming  to 
New  York  all  of  his  life  was  spent  in  the  Court 
and  camp.  In  the  former  he  recognized  the 
crown  as  the  symbol  of  authority  which  all  roy- 
alists were  required  to  respect  and,  if  necessary, 
defend  with  their  lives,  while  the  latter  was  to 
him,  as  to  all  soldiers,  the  badge  of  obedience. 
Upon  his  arrival  in  Boston,  where  both  the  civil 
and  military  authority  were  united  in  his  person, 
Sir  Edmund  expected  the  respect  and  obedience 
which  he  had  yielded  without  question  to  his 
sovereign  and  superior  officers.  When  it  was 
not  forthcoming,  and  especially  during  the  trou- 


298  Wadsworth 

blesome  times  when  those  who  dominated  his 
council  fleeced  the  Massachusetts  land  owners 
whose  property  was  not  granted  under  seal,  it 
is  not  surprising  that  he  lost  his  temper  and  told 
the  colonists  when  they  brought  their  complaints 
to  him  that  they  were  either  subjects  or  rebels 
and  that  their  Indian  deeds  were  of  no  more 
value  than  the  scratch  of  a  bear's  paw.1 

Above  all  this,  Andros  was  a  soldier,  and  while 
he  knew  when  to  yield  to  superior  force  or  con- 
stituted authority,  he  never  hesitated,  no  matter 
how  disagreeable  the  duty,  to  carry  out  the  orders 
of  his  superiors.  The  odium  which  has  been 
cast  upon  him  by  New  England  belongs  to  the 
Duke  of  York,  whose  orders  he  acted  under  when 
in  New  York  and  whose  will  was  his  mandate, 
when  as  James  II.,  he  sent  him  to  Boston  in 
1686. 

The  idea  of  uniting  all  of  the  New  England 

1  Connecticut  did  not  have  any  trouble  over  land 
titles  during  the  Andros  administration,  as  when  it 
became  inevitable  that  the  Charter  would  be  annulled 
the  undivided  lands  were  split  up,  each  township  being 
ordered  to  take  out  deeds  for  their  grants  under  the 
seal  of  the  Colony.  In  Massachusetts  the  land  was 
granted,  but  not  under  seal.  When  its  Charter  was  an- 
nulled the  grants  never  having  been  perfected,  became 
void  and  Andros,  or  rather  his  council,  offered  to  con- 
firm the  titles  on  payment  of  a  moderate  first  rent, 
which  was  considered  a  burden  to  men  who  had  held 
the  lands  for  over  half  a  century. 


Hiding  the  Charter  301 

Colonies  did  not  originate  with  Andros,  but  grew 
out  of  the  complaints  filed  by  Randolph,  who 
flooded  the  Committee  of  Trade  and  Plantations 
with  letters  showing  that  the  Colonists  did  not 
look  to  the  throne  as  "the  wellspring  of  dignity 
or  the  fountain  of  justice,  of  honor,  of  office  and 
privilege,"  and  that  they  were  constantly  ex- 
ceeding the  rights  granted  in  their  Charters. 
The  Massachusetts  Charter  having  been  an- 
nulled and  Rhode  Island  willing  to  surrender  its 
letters  royal,  Andros  was  selected  to  represent 
his  old  patron,  and  when  assuming  office  he  was 
compelled,  or  possibly  he  never  thought  of  it, 
to  take  under  his  protection  Randolph,  whose 
spying  eyes  were  constantly  noting  all  of  the 
failings  of  the  colonists  but  never  saw  any  of 
their  good  qualities  or  the  difficulties  with  which 
they  were  forced  to  contend  in  the  New  World. 
Time  and  again  it  has  been  said  of  Randolph  that 
he  wandered  up  and  down  seeking  whom  he 
could  devour,  viewing  with  jaundiced  eyes  those 
who  would  not  lend  a  willing  ear  to  his  over- 
bearing inquisitiveness,  be  blind  to  his  cupidity, 
or  respect  his  petty  authority.  Upon  Randolph, 
the  scourge  of  the  Colonies,  execrations  cannot 
be  too  loud  or  deep,  and  Andros  must  to  a  cer- 
tain extent  bear  his  share  of  it  through  having 


302  Wadsworth 

been  associated  with  him  in  the  service  of  the 
power-blind  and  bigotted  prince  and  King  James 
the  second  and  last  of  that  name  to  sit  upon  the 
throne  of  England. 

Randolph's  tattling  began  long  before  Andros 
arrived  in  Boston.  He  was  there  eleven  years 
and  during  that  period  crossed  the  Atlantic  eight 
times  with  complaints,  while  he  drew  with  his 
own  hands  the  articles  under  which  the  quo  war- 
ranto  proceedings  against  the  Massachusetts, 
Rhode  Island  and  Connecticut  Charters  were  in- 
stituted, and  while  none  of  them  were  carried  to 
a  judgment,  the  Massachusetts  Charter  was  an- 
nulled under  a  writ  of  scire  facias,  while  Rhode 
Island  yielded  and  Connecticut — well,  possibly 
evaded  is  the  proper  word — the  issue.  Knowing 
that  his  methods  made  him  the  target  of  Colonial 
scorn,  Randolph  hoped  to  win  favor  at  White- 
hall, but  he  never  had  the  courage  to  gloat  over 
his  work  until  after  Andros  appeared  on  the 
scene.  Then,  with  a  Governor  behind  him,  he 
began  to  tell  in  his  correspondence  of  the  doings 
of  the  council  and  boasted  that  they  were  as 
arbitrary  as  the  Grand  Turk. 

Andros'  career  in  America  does  not  require 
an  apology,  even  if  he  was  one  of  "the  kind  that 


Hiding  the  Charter  303 

goeth  not  out  but  by  prayer  and  fasting."1  He 
conducted  his  government  like  a  soldier  under 
orders,  force  or  an  attempt  at  it  taking  the  place 
of  diplomacy,  and  while  charges  were  preferred 
against  him  in  New  York,  the  outcome  did  not 
forfeit  the  respect  or  support  of  his  employer. 
On  the  other  hand,  King  James  sent  him  back  to 
America  with  increased  powers  and  at  the  same 
time  bade  him  make  the  government  self-sus- 
taining. 

This  is  Sir  Edmund  Andros  as  I  remember 
him,  my  opinion  of  the  man  and  his  methods 
being  based  upon  his  military  training  and  the 
period  in  which  he  lived.  He  was  ambitious. 
What  Colonial  Governor  was  not?  He  was  un- 
scrupulous. What  soldier  is  not?  He  was  se- 
vere. So  are  all  in  authority  if  the  record  is  kept 
by  those  who  are  governed  without  their  con- 
sent. 

The  orders  of  King  James  II.  and  his  coun- 
sellors to  Sir  Edmund  Andros  to  annex  the  gov- 
ernment of  Connecticut  to  the  one  over  which  he 

*The  discontents  of  the  people  made  such  impression 
upon  him  that  one  morning  he  told  Doctor  Hooker 
he  thought  the  good  people  of  Connecticut  kept  many 
dayes  of  fasting  and  prayer  on  his  account.  Very 
probable,  says  the  doctor,  for  we  read  that  this  kind 
goeth  not  out  by  other  means. — Roger  Wolcott's  Me- 
moir, July  I2th,  1759. 


304  Wadsworth 

presided,  arrived  at  Boston  on  Saturday,  October 
17,  1687,  Lady  Andros  coming  on  the  same  ship. 
On  Friday  of  the  following  week  at  His  Majes- 
ty's council  in  Boston,  the  Governor  read  the 
orders  received,  and  it  passed  a  resolution1  that 
his  Excellency  should  go  in  person  and  take  Con- 
necticut under  his  government.  On  the  same 
date  he  also  wrote  Governor  Treat  as  follows : 
gr  "Boston,  Oct.  22d,  1687. 

This  is  to  acquaint  you  that  I  have  received  effectual 
orders  and  commands  from  his  Matie  for  Connecticott, 
annexed  to  this  Government,  (in  a  very  gratious  man- 
ner) with  particular  regard,  and  favor  to  yrselfe.  And 
resolve  to  send  or  be  myselfe  att  Hartford  abt  the 
end  of  next  weeke,2  'pursuant  there  unto,  to  meete  you 
and  such  Gentn  as  you  shall  think  fitt  for  his  maties 
sd  service  wch  I  will  not  doubt  to  yr  satisfaccon  and 
other  his  Maties  loyall  subjects  to  yr  parts;  and  re- 
main, Sr,  Yor  very  affectionate  Friend, 

E.  Andros." 

1  The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  order:  "Advised 
and  Resolved.  That  his  Excellencye  doe  goe  in  person 
or  send  about  the  latter  end  of  the  next  weeke  to  take 
the  said  place  under  his  Government,  pursuant  to  the 
said  Orders  with  such  of  the  Councill  or  other  per- 
sons Guards,  and  attendance  as  he  shall  think  fitt;  of 
which  to  give  notice  to  Governour  Treat  and  Secretary 
Allen." 

*His  Excellency,  with  sundry  of  the  Council,  Justices, 
and  other  Gentlemen,  four  Blew-Coats,  two  trumpeters 
(Sam.  Bligh  one),  15  or  20  Red-Coats,  with  small 
Guns,  and  short  Lances  in  the  tops  of  them — set  forth 
for  Woodcock's  (Woodcock's  tavern,  in  what  is  now 
Attleborough,  Mass.),  in  order  to  goe  to  Connecticut, 
to  assume  the  Government  of  that  place. — Judge 
Sewall's  Diary,  October  26,  1687. 


Hiding  the  Charter  305 

Upon  receipt  of  this  notice  the  Governor  sum- 
moned the  General  Court  to  meet  at  Hartford, 
while  those  in  command  of  the  train  bands  and 
the  troop  of  horse  were  instructed  to  be  in  readi- 
ness to  receive  Sir  Edmund  Andros  in  a  manner 
commensurate  with  his  office.  The  assistants, 
deputies  and  troops  were  all  assembled  in  Hart- 
ford by  Friday  of  the  following  week,  while  men 
were  posted  away  towards  Springfield  so  as  to  be 
in  readiness  to  advise  those  in  waiting  of  the 
Governor's  approach. 

Nothing  was  heard  of  him  on  that  date  or  on 
Saturday,  the  first  advice  coming  from  Wethers- 
field  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  of  the  fol- 
lowing Monday,1  when  Samuel  Talcott,  Captain 
of  the  troop  of  Hartford  County,  rode  into  the 
meeting  house  yard  and  gave  notice  of  his  Ex- 
cellency's coming  that  way.  Before  leaving 
Wethersfield  he  had  under  his  authority  as  as- 

'On  Monday,  Oct.  31,  1687,  Sir  E.  A.  (with  divers 
of  the  members  of  his  council  and  other  gentlemen 
attending  him,  and  with  his  guard,)  came  to  Hartford, 
where  he  was  received  with  all  respect  and  welcome 
congratulation  that  Connecticut  was  capable  of.  The 
troop  of  horse  of  that  county  conducted  him  honorably 
from  the  ferry  through  Wethersfield  up  to  Hartford, 
where  the  trained  bands  of  divers  towns,  (who  had 
waited  there  some  part  of  the  week  before,  expect- 
ing his  coming  then,  now  again,  being  commanded 
by  their  leaders,)  waited  to  pay  him  their  respects  at 
his  coming. — Gershom  Bulkeley's  Will  and  Doom. 


306  Wadsworfh 

sistant  "created  a  constable  authorizing  him  to 
press  boats  and  men  to  carry  over  his  Excellency 
and  retinue  without  delay."  Also  as  soon  as 
everything  was  in  readiness  the  troop  of  horse 
started  towards  Wethersfield  to  meet  and  con- 
duct Gov.  Andros  to  Hartford. 

It  was  almost  dusk  before  the  lookout  on  the 
South  Green  reported  their  approach.  In  a  few 
minutes  Captain  Talcott  on  his  flashy  chestnut 
was  seen  coming  up  Queen  street1  in  front  of  his 
troop,  but  on  this  occasion  his  mount  showed 
none  of  the  fire  or  fancy  steps  which  always  dis- 
tinguished him  in  the  parades  of  the  company,  the 
hard  ride  from  Wethersfield  to  acquaint  the  Gov- 
ernor of  the  coming  of  his  Excellency  from  that 
quarter  and  back  again  with  the  troop,  having 
taken  the  gimp  out  of  the  little  beauty.  Upon 
his  arrival  at  the  edge  of  the  meeting  house  yard 
Captain  Talcott  turned,  while  the  troopers  di- 
vided in  the  center  and  backing  their  mounts 
to  the  sides  of  the  street,  left  a  clear  passage 
for  Sir  Edmund  Andros  and  his  company  to  pass 
between  the  train  bands  to  the  Meeting  House. 

Two  trumpeters  preceded  his  Excellency,  the 
jangling  notes  of  their  horns  sounding  strangely 
in  the  ears  of  those  who  had  been  accustomed 
to  hear  nothing  but  the  meeting  house  bell 

1  Main  Street. 


Hiding  the  Charter  307 

or  the  roll  of  a  drum  to  herald  the  arrival  of  a 
dignitary  or  a  call  to  duty.  Sir  Edmund  was 
mounted  on  a  steel  gray  horse,  whose  fine  bony 
head,  tapering  ears  and  crested  neck  showed  that 
he  carried  in  his  veins  the  barb  blood  which 
Charles  II.  and  Cromwell  had  introduced  into 
England  and  which  was  now  found  in  nearly  all  of 
the  better  mounts  of  the  officers  in  the  English 
army.  He  was  a  horse  of  great  substance  and 
power  and  carried  his  rider  with  that  light, 
springy  step  which  denotes  courage  and  the  ability 
to  go  fast  and  far.  As  he  passed  the  troop  horses 
and  moved  by  the  train  bands  the  strain  on  the 
rein  showed  that  the  thirty-eight  mile  march  from 
Norwich  had  not  cooled  the  wild  spirits  in  his 
veins,  while  his  rider  sat  him  with  the  grace  and 
ease  which  is  acquired  only  by  years  in  the 
saddle. 

Joseph  Dudley  and  John  Fitz  Winthrop,  the 
latter  having  joined  the  party  at  Norwich,  fol- 
lowed the  Governor,  and  they  were  in  turn  fol- 
lowed by  William  Stoughton,  Robert  Mason, 
John  Usher,  John  Pynchon,  Bartholomew  Gid- 
ney,  Edward  Ting  and  Secretary  John  West,  all 
of  which  preceded  twenty-five  or  thirty  red  coat- 
ed soldiers  armed  with  small  guns  and  short 
lances  in  the  tops  of  them. 


308  Wadsworth 

Sir  Edmund  Andros  turned  his  horse  from  the 
street  and  passing  between  the  trumpeters,  who 
posted  themselves  on  opposite  sides  of  the  cleared 
space  between  the  train  bands,  rode  almost  to 
the  Meeting  House,  on  the  steps  of  which  Gov- 
ernor Treat,  Deputy-Governor  Bishop,  the  As- 
sistants and  Deputies  were  drawn  up  to  receive 
him.  As  he  swung  out  of  the  saddle  I  could 
have  brushed  his  coat  with  my  hand,  the  com- 
pany of  which  I  was  lieutenant  being  close  to 
the  building.  As  he  was  not  accompanied  by  an 
orderly  and  no  one  came  forward  to  take  his 
horse,  Sir  Edmund,  turning  towards  me,  said, 
"Lieutenant,  detail  a  man  to  hold  my  horse  until 
an  orderly  comes  for  him." 

As  he  spoke  I  glanced  down  the  front  rank  of 
my  company,  and  as  every  face  was  set  and  stern, 
fearing  a  refusal  if  an  order  was  given,  I  stepped 
forward  and  saluting,  said,  "Your  Excellency,  I 
will  consider  it  an  honor  to  hold  the  rein  of  such 
a  magnificent  horse."  The  remark  pleased  him, 
and  half  turning  towards  me  he  said  with  a  smile 
in  which  anyone  could  see  with  half  an  eye  that 
he  had  an  old  trooper's  love  for  the  gallant  gray, 
"He  is  the  best  bit  of  blood  in  New  England," 
and  after  patting  him  on  the  neck  he  turned  to 
greet  the  Governor,  who,  coming  forward  with 


Hiding  the  Charter  309 

extended  hands,  said,  "Yes,  and  you  have  the 
boldest  blade  and  most  fearless  soldier  in  Con- 
necticut to  hold  him." 

"Not  so,  my  dear  Major,"  said  Andros,  with 
the  smile  of  a  courtier,  "since  I  have  heard  and 
read  of  the  fort  fight  at  Narragansett  that  honor 
belongs  to  one  who  is  higher  in  the  ranks  of  the 
military,  and  one  whom  I  hope  this  evening  or 
on  the  morrow  to  have  with  me  as  a  member  of 
His  Majesty's  council.  But  it  is  late.  The  day 
has  almost  gone  since  I  left  Norwich  before  sun 
up  in  the  hope  of  arriving  before  the  hours  de- 
voted to  the  fairies  and  witches  on  All  Hallow 
E'en,1  and  would  have  done  so  had  not  my  com- 
pany been  delayed  at  the  Wethersfield  ferry. 
However,  my  letter  has  advised  you  of  my  mis- 
sion and  the  orders  under  which  I  come.  There 
is  no  occasion  for  treaty  at  this  hour,  as  I  see 
no  provision  has  been  made  for  lights  in  the 
Meeting  House.  I  would  therefore  be  pleased 
to  have  you  and  Deputy  Governor  Bishop,  as 
well  as  your  worthy  Secretary,  join  the  members 
of  the  council  at  dinner,  for  which  our  long  ride 
has  given  us  ample  appetites.  Two  hours  hence 

1  "Halloween  is  thought  to  be  a  night  when  witches, 
devils,  and  other  mischief-making  beings  are  all  abroad 
on  their  baneful,  midnight  errands." — Burns'  Notes  to 
his  Halloween. 


310  Wadsworth 

we  can  meet  in  the  Council  Chamber  at  the  inn 
where  Fitz  Winthrop  advises  me  you  hold  many 
of  your  meetings  and  of  which  the  Colony  was 
at  one  time  proprietor.  Odds  fish!  under  such 
circumstances  who  would  hesitate  at  being  the 
governor  of  the  granary  of  New  England." 

As  there  was  no  one  to  express  disapproval  to 
the  proposal  of  Sir  Edmund,  after  an  exchange 
of  courtesies  with  the  Assistants  and  Deputies, 
he  and  the  Governor  withdrew  to  the  tavern, 
being  followed  by  Deputy  Governor  Bishop,  Sec- 
retary Allyn  and  the  members  of  his  Council, 
none  of  whom  dismounted  until  after  the  time 
was  fixed  for  the  meeting. 

After  my  company  had  been  dismissed  and 
while  I  was  standing  in  the  square,  one  of  Samuel 
Wyllys'  black  boys  came  to  me  and  said  that  I 
was  wanted  at  his  master's  house.  Without  hav- 
ing an  opportunity  to  change  my  uniform  I  went 
there  and  on  my  arrival  found  Nathaniel  Stanley 
and  my  brother  in  consultation  with  Mistress 
Ruth  Wyllys.  They  had  come  for  the  Charter, 
Governor  Treat  having  advised  them  that  it 
would  be  necessary  to  surrender  it  to  Sir  Ed- 
mund Andros  in  accordance  with  the  instruc- 
tions of  His  Majesty  James  II.  As  to  what 
penalty  would  be  imposed  on  either  or  both  of 


w 

: '">•-'.  £-iv 

ff-.m,    riBfl 


Hiding  the  Charter  313 

them  in  the  event  of  their  failing  to  produce  the 
Charter,  they  were  unable  to  determine.  Finally 
it  was  decided  to  take  it.  I  returned  with  them 
and  went  up  stairs  into  the  Court  Chamber. 

Before  reciting  what  took  place  at  the  meeting 
it  will  be  necessary  to  refer  to  the  tavern  in 
which  it  was  held.  The  building  was  originally 
occupied  by  Jeremiah  Adams,  who  came  to 
Hartford  with  the  Hooker  company.  After  serv- 
ing as  a  constable  he  engaged  in  the  grain  trade, 
purchasing  corn  from  the  up  river  towns.  In 
1660  he  embarked  in  the  liquor  business,  having 
secured  the  exclusive  right  to  retail  liquors  in 
Hartford,1  and  at  the  session  of  the  General  Court 
held  at  Hartford  March  31,  1661-2  he  was  granted 
permission2  to  open  an  Ordinary  for  the  entertain- 
ment of  travelers. 

1This  Court  doth  order,  that  noe  person  in  Hartford, 
except  Jer:  Adams  shal  sell  wine,  under  a  quarter  cask, 
nor  liquors  under  an  Ankor.  Order  General  Court 
May  17,  1660. 

2  "It  is  granted  and  ordered  by  this  Court,  vpon  the 
motion  and  desire  of  Jeremiah  Adams,  that  ye  house 
that  the  said  Jer:  doth  now  possess  and  improue  for 
an  Ordinary,  or  house  of  comon  enterteinment,  shalbe 
and  remaine  for  the  same  end  and  vse  and  occupation 
for  the  future,  both  to  ye  said  Jeremie  and  his  suc- 
cessors, provided  as  hereafter  is  expressed:  I.  That 
ye  said  Jeremie,  his  heires  and  successors,  carry  on  this 
worke,  by  such  prson  or  prsons  inhabiteing  in  ye  said 
house  as  shalbe  to  ye  good  liking  and  approbation  of 
ye  Genii  Court  from  time  to  time.  2.  That  ye  said 


314  Wadsworth 

The  venture  was  not  a  success,  and  in  January, 
1666,  the  property,  which  consisted  of  three  acres 
of  land1  and  the  buildings  on  it,  was  mortgaged 
to  the  Colony,  which  eventually  came  into  pos- 
session by  foreclosure  January  14,  1680.  One  of 
the  first  steps  taken  by  the  General  Court  after 

house  be  fitted  and  made  capable  to  giue  sufficient 
enterteinment  as  need  and  occasion  shal  require,  both 
to  neighbours  and  strangers.  3.  That  there  be  at  all 
times  necessary  &  comfortable  accommodation  and 
provison  made  for  enterteinment  of  Travellers  with 
horse  and  otherwise,  and  that  both  respecting  wine 
and  liquors  and  other  food  and  comfortable  refreshing 
both  for  man  and  beast.  4.  It  is  ordered,  that  if  Jer: 
Adams  shall  not  attend  his  agreement  in  attending  the 
provision  made  in  ye  foregoing  Articles,  he  shal  not 
forfeit  his  licence,  but  shalbe  liable  to  be  censured  by 
the  Court  as  they  shal  judg  most  suteable." 

1  The  tavern  stood  on  the  land  bounded  by  Grove 
(Orient),  Main  (Queen)  and  Atheneum  (Wadsworth 
Lane)  Streets  to  the  Meeting  House  Alley,  which  was 
about  one  hundred  and  forty  feet  east  of  the  present 
line  of  Prospect  Street.  It  was  known  as  the  Bunch 
of  Grapes,  a  name  no  doubt  given  it  in  1679  or  80,  as 
at  a  County  Court  held  in  Hartford  December  4,  1679, 
Jeremy  Adams  "having  no  signe  according  to  law" 
was  ordered  "to  set  up  a  compleat  signe  before  the 
March  Court  or  pay  a  fine  of  forty  shillings."  The 
building  stood  back  from  the  street  and  is  supposed  to 
have  been  on  the  land  now  covered  by  the  Universalist 
Church  of  Redeemer,  and  was  in  the  next  century  suc- 
ceeded by  the  Black  Horse  Tavern,  so  called  from  a 
horse  of  that  color  painted  on  the  sign,  of  which  Sam- 
uel Flagg,  who  acquired  the  property  through  purchase 
and  marriage,  was  in  1757  the  proprietor.  Flagg  mar- 
ried Sarah  Bunce,  a  daughter  of  Jonathan  Bunce,  whose 
wife  Sarah  was  a  daughter  of  Zachariah  Sandford,  a 
grandson  of  Jeremy  Adams. 


Hiding  the  Charter  315 

obtaining  possession  was  to  set  aside  an  upper 
room  for  its  meetings,  as  well  as  the  meetings 
held  in  connection  with  town  and  county  affairs. 
After  being  in  the  tavern  business  for  about  four 
years  the  General  Court  at  its  May  meeting  in 
1685  ordered  that  it  should  be  sold,1  and  on  De- 
cember 2  of  the  same  year  the  land  and  build- 
ings were  purchased  by  Zachariah  Sandford,  a 
grandson  of  the  original  proprietor. 

After  the  transfer  Sandford  enlarged  and  im- 
proved the  place,  adding  a  wing  to  the  northeast 
side  of  the  building,  the  back  wall  of  which  ran 
parallel  with  the  lane  connecting  Queen  Street 
with  the  Meeting  House  Alley.  This  addition 
darkened  a  window  in  the  council  chamber,  it 
being  concealed  by  a  valance.  Also  when  mak- 
ing the  addition  a  stairway  was  built  to  connect 
this  window  with  the  lane,  a  door  which  could 
be  opened  only  from  the  inside  leading  to  the 
latter.  The  window  was  also  placed  on  hinges 
and  was  used  as  an  exit  by  members  during  the 
sessions  or  occasionally  for  removing  prisoners 

lrrhis  Court  doe  desire  and  impower  Major  John 
Tallcott,  Capt.  John  Allyn,  Mr.  John  Wadsworth,  and 
Mr.  Joseph  Whiting  to  make  sale  of  the  house  and 
homelott,  now  in  the  possession  of  the  country,  ac- 
cording to  their  best  discression  for  the  use  of  the 
colony,  and  do  desire  and  impower  Mr.  Joseph  Whit- 
ing, Treasurer,  to  signe  the  deed  of  sale. — Colonial 
Records. 


316  Wadsworth 

or  witnesses  who  did  not  care  to  pass  through 
the  crowds  that  usually  congregated  in  front  of 
the  Ordinary  when  court  was  in  session. 

When  a  Deputy  I  frequently  had  occasion  to 
use  these  stairs  and  now  at  the  suggestion  of 
Stanley  I  passed  through  the  window  with  in- 
structions to  await  further  orders.  When  closing 
the  window  I  pushed  the  valance  far  enough 
aside  so  that  I  could  see  all  that  was  being  done 
in  the  Chamber,  and  by  opening  the  window  a 
trifle  I  could  also  hear  everything  that  was  said. 

As  the  hour  for  the  meeting  approached  the 
servants  of  the  inn  entered  the  room  and  were 
soon  busy  under  the  supervision  of  a  stranger 
whom  I  afterwards  learned  was  one  of  Governor 
Andros'  orderlies,  putting  the  forms,  joint  stools 
and  chairs  in  place  for  the  meeting.  The  two 
tables  were  placed  in  the  form  of  a  T,  one  of  the 
large  leather  chairs1  being  placed  in  the  center 

1  Jeremy  Adams  died  August  n,  1683.  The  inven- 
tory of  his  estate  as  preserved  in  the  Probate  Records 
of  Hartford  parcels  off  his  household  property  as  "in 
the  little  dining  room" — "in  the  old  parlor — in  the 
parlor  chamber — in  the  kitchen,"  and  among  the  rest 
the  following: 

In  the  Court  Chamber  two  Tables  &  a  Carpet 

i  £   IDS  oo. 

By  one  Doz.  stools  &  a  form  i       10    oo 

By  2  leather  chayres  and  4  other  chayres, 

i       10    oo 
etc.,  etc.,  etc. 


Hiding  the  Charter  317 

of  the  table  that  was  crosswise  of  the  room,  with 
four  chairs  on  either  side  of  it,  this  being  a  suffi- 
cient number  to  seat  the  members  of  His  Majes- 
ty's Council  in  attendance.  The  other  leather 
chair  was  placed  at  the  end  of  the  table  which 
made  the  stem  of  the  letter  and  was  within  a 
few  feet  of  the  window  behind  which  I  was  con- 
cealed. Six  joint  stools  were  placed  on  each  side 
of  this  table,  ten  of  them  being  for  the  Assist- 
ants, one  for  Deputy  Governor  Bishop  and  one 
for  Secretary  West,  who  as  I  afterwards  found 
required  a  seat  near  the  lights  so  as  to  be  able  to 
read  his  Excellency's  commission.  Between  the 
table  and  the  east  wall  forms  were  placed  for 
the  Deputies,  who  began  to  assemble  in  the 
chamber  as  soon  as  the  fourteen  candles  in  the 
two  candelabra  were  lighted.  These  were  placed 
on  the  lower  table,  one  being  about  the  center  of 
it  and  the  other  at  the  further  end. 

As  soon  as  the  Assistants  entered  the  chamber 
they  were  shown  to  the  places  reserved  for  them, 
but  none  of  them  were  seated  until  after  Sir 
Edmund  Andros,  wearing  his  hat,  all  others  be- 
ing uncovered,  appeared  with  those  who  had 
dined  with  him.  As  soon  as  he  was  seated  at 
the  center  of  the  upper  table  all  of  the  others 
took  their  places,  while  the  orderly  retired  and 


318  Wadsworth 

an  officer  appeared  at  the  door.  Sir  Edmund 
ordered  it  closed  and  instructed  his  Secretary  to 
read  his  commission  as  Governor  of  New  Eng- 
land, together  with  the  additional  powers  and 
instructions  given  him  in  reference  to  the  Colony 
of  Rhode  Island  and  Providence  Plantations  and 
the  Colony  of  Connecticut. 

With  a  voice  as  clear  as  a  bell  Secretary  West 
read  the  commands  of  King  James  respecting 
his  Territory  and  Dominion  of  New  England  in 
America  and  followed  it  with  a  copy  of  the  order 
from  the  King  and  his  counsellors  to  Sir  Edmund 
Andros  to  annex  Connecticut  to  his  government. 
When  he  sat  down  there  was  an  ominous  silence. 
As  I  glanced  over  the  familiar  faces  of  the  As- 
sistants and  Deputies  many  of  them  looked  ghast- 
ly in  the  flickering  candle  light,  while  the  old 
look  of  determination  which  was  seen  there  while 
there  was  a  chance  of  saving  the  Charter  was 
succeeded  by  one  almost  akin  to  despair. 

Of  the  thirty-four  Deputies  elected  the  pre- 
ceding May,  the  following  were  present : 

Nathaniel  Stanley  and  Ceprian  Niccols  for 
Hartford,  Henry  Wollcott  for  Windsor,  William 
Lewes  and  John  Stanley  for  Farmington,  Daniel 
Harris  for  Middletown,  Moses  Mansfield  and 
Abram  Dickerman  for  New  Haven,  John  Beard 


Hiding  the  Charter  319 

and  Samuel  Buckingham  for  Milford,  Samuel 
Sherman  for  Stratford,  Samuel  Hayes  for  Nor- 
walk,  Thomas  Leffingwell  for  Norwich,  Abraham 
Brunson  for  Lyme,  Henry  Crane  for  Killing- 
worth,  William  Johnson  and  John  Grave  for  Guil- 
ford,  Thomas  Yale  and  John  Hall  for  Walling- 
ford,  Ebenezer  Johnson  for  Derby,  George  Gates 
for  Haddem,  Elezur  Street  for  Branford,  John 
Chapman  and  William  Dudly  for  Saybrook.  The 
towns  of  Simsbury,1  Woodbury,  Stamford  and 
Stonington  were  not  represented. 

By  the  table  at  which  Governor  Treat  sat  with 
Deputy  Governor  Bishop  on  his  left  were  grouped 
the  Assistants,  John  Talcott,  John  Allyn,  Will- 
iam Jones,  John  Wadsworth,  Andrew  Leete,  Ben- 
jamin Newbery,  Giles  Hamlin,  James  Fitch  and 
Samuel  Mason.  On  the  right  of  the  Governor 
there  was  a  vacant  stool.  It  was  the  one  reserved 
for  Assistant  Samuel  Talcott,  the  Captain  of  the 
Hartford  troop.  As  it  was  apparent  that  Sir 
Edmund  Andros  was  waiting  for  Governor  Treat 
to  make  a  statement,  the  latter  beckoned  to  Na- 
thaniel Stanley,  who  was  seated  at  the  end  of 
one  of  the  forms.  He  came  forward  and  after 
handing  the  Charter  to  the  Governor,  sat  down 

1  Simsbury  had  no  representative  in  the  General 
Court  from  1675  to  1687,  when  Peter  Bewell  was 
elected. 


320  Wadsworth 

on  the  vacant  stool,  which  was  so  close  to  the 
window  that  I  could  have  touched  it  without 
entering  the  chamber. 

Governor  Treat  snipped  the  deer  skin  thong 
with  which  the  Charter  was  tied  and  laid  it  on 
the  table.  As  it  unrolled  the  illuminated  head 
and  picture  of  Charles  II.  on  the  parchment 
could  be  seen  by  all.  Pointing  towards  it  and 
addressing  Sir  Edmund  Andros  as  though  he 
were  conversing  with  him,  the  Governor  said, 
"That  Charter  represents  the  accumulated  ef- 
forts of  the  founders  of  this  Colony  and  the  toil 
and  savings  of  their  children.  For  over  half  a 
century  they  have  carried  the  flag  of  civilization 
into  the  wilderness,  clearing  the  forests,  drain- 
ing the  marshes  and  making  two  blades  of  grass 
grow  where  there  had  been  but  one  before,  while 
at  all  times  they  stood  ready  to  defend  their 
homes  and  the  homes  of  those  dwelling  in  the 
neighboring  colonies  from  the  attacks  of  the  In- 
dians. 

"In  the  second  year  of  the  founding  of  this 
Colony  one-half  of  the  able  bodied  men  left  their 
families  and  homes,  which  were  then  little  better 
than  hovels,  on  the  river,  to  attack  the  Pequots, 
who,  true  to  their  nature,  were  destroying  all 
that  was  near  and  dear  to  us.  With  fire  and 


Hiding  the  Chartei  321 

sword  they  carried  destruction  and  death  almost 
to  extermination  among  them.  Since  that  time 
Connecticut  was  not  attacked  by  the  red  men, 
but  the  annoyances  continued  on  account  of  the 
constant  depredations  and  desultory  war  which 
harassed  the  other  colonies,  until  at  the  Narra- 
gansett  fort  fight  when  fully  one-third  of  Con- 
necticut's troops  were  slain  or  wounded.  They 
gave  their  lives  freely  that  New  England  might 
live.  Their  blood  was  shed  to  save  the  homes 
guaranteed  to  them  and  their  children  by  that 
Charter,  and  it  is  like  giving  up  life  itself  to  sur- 
render it. 

"When  the  Fundamental  Orders  were  adopted 
the  Connecticut  valley  was  a  wilderness.  Later, 
when  our  fathers  purchased  the  river  right  and 
Saybrook  fort  from  the  Warwick  patentees 
through  George  Fenwick,  they  freely  contributed 
the  dole  of  grain,  although  they  could  ill  spare  it, 
for  'pay'  to  meet  the  obligations  of  the  Colony. 
This  tax  upon  their  resources  was  followed  by 
another  demand  to  provide  for  the  expenses  in- 
curred by  Governor  John  Winthrop  in  procuring 
that  Charter  from  King  Charles  II.  of  blessed 
memory,  the  products  of  their  fields  being  car- 
ried to  New  London  to  meet  the  bills  issued  in 
London  in  their  name  and  under  the  order  of  the 


322  Wadsworth 

General  Court.  And  now  after  expending  all 
this  blood  and  treasure  we  are  called  upon  to 
surrender  the  Charter  for  expediency  in  the  con- 
duct of  a  government  in  which  we  will  be  but  a 
small  part  and  in  which  we  will  have  virtually  no 
voice. 

"At  this  time  while  there  is  still  in  my  mind  a 
doubt  as  to  the  legality  of  this  procedure  which 
is  being  forced  upon  us  for  what  has  been  termed 
'reasons  of  state/  I,  as  one  of  those  who  fought 
and  struggled  in  the  name  of  the  Colony,  am 
willing  to  yield  a  nominal  consent  until  further 
inquiry  can  be  made,  but  do  so  well  aware  that 
if  the  rights  of  the  people  are  invaded  and  we 
cannot  obtain  redress  it  will  result  in  another 
removal  to  a  territory  under  a  flag  that  respects' 
its  own  acts.  I,  for  one,  will  be  the  first  to  dis- 
pose of  what  I  have  here  and  with  what  goods  can 
be  carried  turn  again  towards  the  setting  sun, 
where  there  are  lands  so  vast  that  no  man  knows 
their  boundaries  and  within  which  millions  yet 
unborn  shall  find  a  heritage.  The  Indians  tell  of 
inland  seas  beyond  the  falling  waters — seas  that 
have  never  been  seen  by  the  white  man — and 
plains  of  grass,  as  limitless  as  the  ocean,  over 
which  roam  herds  of  woolly  cattle  and  droves  of 
horses  that  have  never  yielded  obedience  to 


Hiding  the  Charter  323 

man.  On  these  lands  we  can  build  new  homes, 
within  which  there  may  in  centuries  to  come  be 
found  the  germs  of  an  empire  greater  than  that 
which  owes  allegiance  to  the  flag  of  England. 

"The  sons  of  men  who  founded  colonies  can 
found  others.  They  are  inured  to  toil,  and  while 
the  homes  of  childhood  have  many  associations 
near  and  dear  to  all  of  us,  there  is  a  greater  and 
a  grander  instinct  which  has  grown  up  among  us 
in  the  New  World — the  privilege  of  thinking 
and  acting  as  freemen.  It  is  our  Magna  Charta." 

When  Governor  Treat  sat  down,  my  brother 
John  arose,  his  tall,  slim  figure,  sharp  features  and 
long  gray  hair  giving  him  the  look  of  a  patriarch. 
Addressing  Governor  Andros  in  a  low,  clear 
voice,  he  said,  "Fifty-one  years  ago  I  came  to 
these  parts,  a  small  child  walking  with  my  father 
in  the  Hooker  company.  What  you  see  here  now 
was  then  a  forest  with  a  few  Indian  villages  be- 
tween this  place  and  Windsor.  I  grew  up  in  this 
Colony  and  know  what  toil  and  trouble  fall  to 
the  lot  of  the  emigrant  and  with  which  no  sane 
man  would  contend  were  it  not  that  within  each 
one  of  us  there  is  a  still  small  voice,  demanding 
in  return  for  toil,  the  freedom  due  to  all  men 
and  the  privilege  of  making  their  ways  in  the 
world  on  an  equality  with  each  other. 


324  Wadsworth 

"The  pampered  life  of  courts  or  the  restfulness 
of  towns,  is  unknown  to  those  whom  you  meet 
in  Connecticut.  They  are,  and  have  been  for  a 
generation,  children  of  the  soil.  They  till  the 
earth  for  what  it  may  bring  forth,  and  with  the 
sweat  of  labor  on  their  brows  stand  ready  at  all 
times  to  defend  their  homes  and  their  lives  from 
those  who  may  feel  disposed  to  invade  them.  As 
protection  from  the  Indians,  each  home  in  the 
Colony  is  armed  with  musket,  powder  and  ball, 
each  householder  being  required  to  keep  a  stated 
supply  on  hand  under  penalty  from  the  General 
Court.1  To  this  constant  state  of  readiness  I  at- 
tribute Connecticut's  freedom  from  attack.  The 
Indians,  remembering  the  fate  of  the  Pequots, 
know  that  these  Englishmen  do  not  wait  to  be 
attacked,  to  be  burned  in  their  homes,  but  have 
from  their  first  coming  stood  as  the  aggressor. 

"Where  would  many  of  the  towns  of  Massa- 
chusetts, Rhode  Island  and  Plymouth,  now  under 
your  government,  be  to-day  were  it  not  for 

1  Every  male  person  within  this  Jurissdiction,  that 
is  above  the  age  of  sixteen  years,  whether  Magistrates, 
Ministers  or  any  other,  (though  exempted  from  train- 
ing, watching  and  warding,)  shall  bee  allways  provided 
with,  and  have  in  readiness  by  them  halfe  a  pound  of 
Powder,  two  pound  of  serviceable  Bulletts  or  shott, 
and  two  fathom  of  match  to  every  Matchlock,  uppon 
the  penalty  of  five  shillings  a  month  for  each  persons 
default  therein.  Code  of  1650. 


Hiding  the  Charter  325 

the  timely  aid  of  the  Connecticut  troops,  led 
by  the  Governor  of  this  Colony,  who  has  just 
addressed  you?  Ask  of  those  living  in  Spring- 
field, Hadley  and  the  other  towns  on  the  river 
how  they  were  saved  from  destruction,  and  when 
the  issue  was  trembling  in  the  balance  in  the 
Narragansett  fort  fight,  when  the  Massachusetts 
forces  fell  back  before  the  withering  fire  of  the 
red  men,  Governor  Treat  and  his  Connecticut 
followers,  a  few  of  whom  are  in  this  chamber, 
rushed  over  the  banked  up  bodies  of  the  dead 
into  the  fort  and  returned  the  fire  of  the  enemy 
with  their  clubbed  muskets. 

"Like  yourself,  the  inhabitants  of  Connecticut 
are  Englishmen.  Like  you,  we  are  proud  of  the 
land  of  our  birth,  but  in  troublous  times,  for  faith 
and  freedom,  our  fathers  left  the  land  of  their 
nativity,  not  in  the  hope  of  extending  the  hold- 
ings of  England  in  the  New  World,  but  of  mak- 
ing homes  in  which  they  would  be  permitted  to 
worship  God  as  their  conscience  dictated.  As 
you  have  lived  at  court,  there  is  no  occasion  to 
speak  of  Laud  and  Stafford,  although  it  was  be- 
fore your  time.  Their  acts  and  their  fate  show 
what  trust  can  be  placed  in  Kings,  while  the  fate 
of  their  master  proved  that  the  homes  of  English- 
men cannot  be  invaded  with  impunity  even  under 
the  guise  of  prerogative. 


326  Wadsworth 

"The  King  whom  you  represent  is  that  man's 
son.  During  the  two  years  of  his  reign  he  has 
created  more  trouble  for  the  Colonies  of  New 
England  than  all  which  preceded  them  since  the 
landing  of  the  Pilgrims  at  Plymouth.  Complaints 
against  our  faith  have  been  urged  by  Randolph, 
a  betrayer  of  his  brethren,  who  of  all  men  knows 
that  the  people  of  this  land  are  of  one  church  and 
one  faith.  For  it  they  sacrificed  their  homes  in 
England  and  sought  the  wilds  of  America.  It 
shall  not  be  changed.  Death  alone  can  alter  that. 
It  will  come  when  the  mantle  of  mortality  is  cast 
aside  for  immortality.  That  faith  is  the  well 
spring  of  our  being.  It  is  nearer  and  dearer  to 
us  than  the  titles  to  our  homes  which  you  now 
hope  to  cloud  by  depriving  the  Colony  of  the 
Charter  that  was  to  belong  to  those  named  in  it 
and  their  descendants  forever  as  stated  in  the 
body  of  the  patent.  A  great  wrong  is  being  done 
us  and  the  black  looks  of  your  associates  shall 
not  deter  me  from  saying  so  in  your  .presence. 
Every  man  in  this  Colony  has  faced  death  too 
often  to  hesitate  when  called  upon  to  express  his 
opinions.  We  have  grown  familiar  with  the  pale 
rider  of  the  Revelations,  as  his  call  is  but  a  bid- 
ding to  another  realm  in  which  the  wicked  will 
cease  from  troubling  and  where  the  toil-stained 


Hiding  the  Charter  327 

but  none  the  less  welcome  wayfarer  shall  find 
rest. 

"Coming  as  you  do,  a  soldier  under  orders,  I 
expect  that  you  will  not  hesitate  in  the  perform- 
ance of  your  duty.  Under  such  conditions  you 
are  compelled  to  act,  but  in  the  doing  remember 
that  you  are  governing  not  the  enemies  of  Eng- 
land, but  her  sons,  who  may  again  in  time  have 
equal  authority  with  yourself  as  when  they  raised 
the  late  Lord  Protector  to  powers  greater  than 
were  ever  wielded  by  an  English  King.  In  time 
even  the  Stuarts  will  learn  that  the  voice  of  the 
people  is  the  voice  of  God,  the  all  redeeming,  all 
ruling  and  all  forgiving  providence  of  mankind. 
Peace  be  with  you." 

After  my  brother  resumed  his  chair  Governor 
Andros  rose  and  turning  towards  him,  said,  "It 
is  with  pleasure  I  learn  that  the  worthy  gentle- 
man who  has  just  spoken  is  a  descendant  of  the 
Wadsworths.  England  has  few  better  names 
among  her  yeomen.  In  London  and  even  in 
Guernsey  I  have  heard  of  the  descendants  of 
Duke  Wada  and  the  giantess  Bell  and  those  val- 
iant squires  whose  names  are  not  only  found  on 
the  army  rolls,  but  are  also  perpetuated  in  the 
names  of  towns  in  the  north  of  England.  No  bet- 
ter soldiers  than  the  Wadsworths  ever  graced  a 


328  Wadsworth 

camp,  ever  fearless  and  bold,  free  of  speech  in  de- 
bate and  firm  of  hand  in  fight.  Massachusetts 
now  mourns  one.1  He  fell  at  Sudbury  in  the  King 
Philip  war,  battling  against  odds,  and  after  hear- 
ing your  discourse  I  have  no  doubt  but  that  the 
Connecticut  stem  of  the  family,  which  shows  by 
the  lilies  of  France  on  its  shield  that  its  ances- 
tors fought  at  either  Crecy  or  Agincourt,  shall, 
when  the  opportunity  presents  itself,  make  a 
mark  that  will  endure  for  all  time. 

"It  also  pleases  me  to  see  that  even  as  our 
Anglo-Saxon  ancestors  bearing  their  war  chief 
on  their  shields  proclaimed  him  their  king,  the 
old  blood  again  asserts  itself  by  raising  the  most 
successful  leader  of  the  Connecticut  troops  in  the 
recent  troubles  to  the  Governor's  chair,  an  au- 
thority which  I  hope  to  continue  on  the  morrow 
by  having  him  become,  pursuant  to  His  Majes- 
ty's command,  a  member  of  the  council  for  New 
England.  And  while  a  number  of  you  at  this 
time  yield  reluctantly,  it  is  well  to  remember  that 
even  Oliver  Cromwell  said  that  'the  ground  of 
necessity  for  the  justifying  of  men's  actions  is 
above  all  considerations  of  instituted  law.' " 

When  Sir  Edmund  Andros  concluded  his  re- 

1  Captain  Samuel  Wadsworth  of  Milton,  who  was 
killed  with  thirty  of  his  men  near  Green  Hill  April 
18,  1676,  while  defending  Sudbury  from  the  Indians. 


THE  WADSWORTH  ARMS 


Hiding  the  Charter  331 

marks,  every  one  in  the  chamber  turned  involun- 
tarily towards  Andrew  Leete.  He  had  risen  from 
his  stool  when  reference  was  made  to  Cromwell, 
and  moving  towards  the  table  rested  both  of  his 
hands  upon  the  edge  of  it.  Leete's  face  was  col- 
orless and  as  he  leaned  forward  between  the  can- 
delabra, the  twitching  of  the  muscles  showed 
that  he  was  laboring  under  a  great  strain, 
while  it  was  apparent  to  those  who  knew  him 
that  he  was  on  the  verge  of  one  of  the  epileptic 
fits  which  had  made  his  life  a  burden  and  on  ac- 
count of  which,  as  I  afterwards  learned,  I  was 
directed  to  attend  him  in  the  June  proceeding 
when  he  carried  one  of  the  Charters  of  the  Col- 
ony to  Guilford,  where  it  was  concealed  in  a  hid- 
ing place  of  the  Whitfield  house  until  after  the 
troubles  over  it  subsided. 

Knowing  that  it  would  be  folly  to  interfere 
with  him,  those  who  were  near  by  drew  away, 
while  Andros  and  the  occupants  of  the  table  at 
which  he  sat,  settled  themselves  complacently  in 
their  chairs  to  hear  what  he  had  to  say.  For  a 
lew  moments  Leete  was  unable  to  speak.  His 
lips  moved,  but  no  sound  came  from  them,  but 
when  the  words  did  come  they  gushed  forth  like 
a  torrent.  Raising  to  his  full  height  he  turned 
towards  Andros  and  said,  "You  speak  of  Crom- 


332  Wadsworth 

well.  You  try  to  justify  your  act  and  the  acts 
of  your  patron  by  his  words.  You  may  have  seen 
him  and  learned  what  he  did,  but  your  knowledge 
ends  there.  Now  that  we  meet  face  to  face  I  will 
tell  you  that  my  father  and  Cromwell  were  boys 
together  in  Huntingdonshire  and  knew  each  other 
in  early  manhood.  Also,  after  the  crisis  in  Eng- 
land, after  Charles  Stuart  had  laid  his  head  on 
the  block,  he  was  among  those  whom  Cromwell 
asked  to  return  to  his  native  land  and  lend  a  hand 
in  creating  a  government  of  the  people  for  the 
people.  Disborow,  Whitfield  and  others  ac- 
cepted the  invitation.  My  father  did  not.  He 
had  cast  his  lot  with  New  England  and  remained 
here.  In  his  time  he  was  Governor  of  New  Ha- 
ven and  of  the  United  Colonies  under  the 
Charter.  Half  of  his  life  was  devoted  to  the 
building  up  of  Connecticut  and  maintaining  its 
Charter  rights,  as  you  no  doubt  remember,  if 
your  visit  to  Saybrook  has  not  passed  from  your 
memory.  In  that  day  you  retired  discomfited, 
and  by  God's  help  you  shall  this  time." 

As  he  continued  Andros'  face  became  black 
with  passion.  The  large  veins  in  his  forehead 
swelled  as  though  they  would  burst,  but  Leete 
either  did  not  see  or  care  for  the  storm  that  was 
apt  to  burst  forth  at  any  moment.  Swaying  back- 


Hiding  the  Charter  333 

ward  and  forward  as  he  spoke,  he  continued, 
"Your  present  mission  shows  that  King  James 
has  yet  to  learn  that  in  order  to  govern  a  people 
it  is  necessary  to  retain  their  affection.  He  has 
forgotten  that  covenants  fairly  entered  into  must 
be  kept.  Take  that  away  and  what  right  has  a 
man  to  anything?  The  rights  of  a  slave  may  be 
invaded  without  protest,  but  no  loyal  subject  will 
yield  without  a  hearing.  In  properly  constituted 
monarchies  the  crown  is  the  guarantee  of  pro- 
tection, not  the  symbol  of  oppression.  All  of  us 
owe  obedience  to  constituted  authority,  but  obe- 
dience and  allegiance  end  when  the  sovereign  as- 
sumes more  authority  than  is  allowed  by  the 
laws." 

Pointing  to  the  Charter  as  it  lay  half  unrolled 
on  the  table,  Leete  with  the  voice  of  a  prophet 
said,  "That  Charter  is  in  force  at  this  hour.  No 
judgment  has  been  rendered  against  it.  It  was 
granted  under  the  great  seal  of  England  and 
cannot  be  surrendered  unless  the  surrender  is 
given  under  the  seal  of  this  Colony.  Remember 
it  is  Charles  I.'s  last  word  and  that  is  why  I  use 
it,  that  measures  obtained  by  force  do  not  en- 
dure." 

As  Leete  uttered  the  last  words  and  before 
anyone  could  reach  him  he  plunged  headlong  on 


334  Wadsworfh 

the  table  between  the  candelabra,  his  outstretched 
arms  upsetting  both  of  them.  In  an  instant  the 
room  was  in  darkness  and  before  the  ensuing 
confusion  subsided  Nathaniel  Stanley  handed  me 
the  Charter  through  the  window.  Slipping  the 
precious  parchment  under  my  tunic  I  rushed 
down  the  stairs,  and  opening  the  door  cautiously 
stepped  into  the  lane.  As  I  turned  to  close  it  a 
man  grabbed  me  and  in  doing  so  said,  "Oddsfish, 
what  have  we  here?" 

Shaking  him  off  as  a  terrier  would  a  trouble- 
some rat,  I  wheeled  and  by  the  dim  light  of  the 
moon,  which  was  in  its  first  quarter,1  I  found 
myself  face  to  face  with  two  trumpeters.  Both 
of  them  showed  by  their  actions  that  they  were 
half  gone  with  drink,  and  before  I  had  time  to 
say  a  word  the  companion  of  the  man  who 
grabbed  me  answered  for  me  by  saying,  "It's  the 
bumpkin  of  a  Lieutenant  who,  instead  of  detail- 
ing a  man  to  take  His  Excellency's  horse,  held  it 
himself."  With  a  laugh  and  a  leer  and  a  remark 
that  I  would  know  better  than  that  when  Sir  Ed- 
mund took  command  of  the  Connecticut  troops, 
they  passed  on  towards  Queen  Street,  while  I 

October  31  (old  style)  1687  -f-  n  =  November  II 
(new  style)  1687.  The  moon  was  new  November  5 
new  style.  Therefore,  on  October  31  (old  style)  it 
was  six  days  old  or  about  in  its  first  quarter. 


Hiding  the  Charter  337 

hurried  through  the  lane  to  the  Meeting  House 
Alley,  down  which  I  ran  at  full  speed  until  the 
river  was  reached.  It  only  took  a  few  moments 
to  cross  it  in  one  of  the  flat  bottom  boats  which 
were  pulled  up  on  the  bank,  and  in  less  than  ten 
minutes  after  the  Charter  was  taken  from  the 
Council  Chamber  it  was  back  again  in  the  front 
parlor  of  Samuel  Wyllys'  house. 

Fortunately  Mistress  Wyllys  was  alone  at  the 
time,  all  of  the  help  on  the  place,  white  and  black, 
having  gone  to  the  Meeting  House  yard  and  that 
vicinity  to  see  the  English  soldiers  in  their  red 
coats  and  pick  up  what  gossip  they  could  about 
those  who  accompanied  Governor  Andros.  After 
telling  her  what  had  occurred  in  the  chamber  and 
of  my  encounter  with  the  trumpeters  she  said 
that  there  was  but  one  thing  for  me  to  do  and 
that  was  to  hide  until  Sir  Edmund  and  all  of  his 
spies  had  returned  to  Boston.  As  for  the  Charter, 
I  could  not  take  it  with  me  and  it  could  not  re- 
main in  the  house,  as  a  general  search  might  be 
made  for  it,  so  she  said,  "Hide  it  in  the  hollow  of 
the  oak.  It  will  shelter  it  just  as  the  leaves  of 
the  Boscobel  oak  hid  the  King,  who  granted  it, 
from  Cromwell's  soldiers."  And  hide  it  we  did, 
first  wrapping  it  in  my  tunic,  "for  no  one,"  as 


338  Wadsworth 

Mistress  Wyllys  remarked,  "would  go  to  the 
woods  in  the  garb  of  a  lieutenant  of  the  train 
band." 

Habited  in  a  coat  and  cap  of  her  husband  I 
was  on  the  point  of  starting  when  she  called  me 
back  and  bade  me  drag  Lion's  kennel  from  the 
rear  of  the  house  to  the  foot  of  the  old  oak  and 
fasten  it  there.  No  one  would  disturb  the  tree 
or  its  contents  with  that  huge  mastiff  there.  He 
was  so  ferocious  that  but  few  people  on  the 
Wyllys  place  could  approach  him,  and  would 
have  been  killed  on  account  of  that  failing  had 
he  not  in  his  younger  days  terrified  the  Indians 
and  prowling  blacks  so  that  they  feared  him  more 
than  an  evil  spirit.  While  I  was  doing  this 
Mistress  Wyllys  made  me  a  small  packet  of  bread 
and  powdered1  beef,  and  within  half  an  hour 
after  running  down  the  back  stairs  of  the  court 
chamber  I  was  off  to  find  a  hiding  place  in  the 
bush. 

After  leaving  the  Wyllys  yard  I  followed  the 
west  bank  of  the  Little  River  until  opposite 
Allyn's  Mill.2  Crossing  the  river  at  this  point 
I  skirted  the  edge  of  Lord's  Hill8  to  the  Brick 

1  Salted. 

1  It  stood  near  the  stepping  stones  in  the  Park  River. 

'Now  Asylum  Hill. 


Hiding  the  Charter  339 

Hill  Road,1  which  I  followed  to  the  Venturers 
Field2  through  which  in  those  days  a  road  ran  to 
the  Cow  Pasture8  and  the  Blue  Hills.  As  I  went 
along  I  decided  to  hide  in  the  vicinity  of  Sims- 
bury,  where  I  knew  I  could  get  food  and  if  neces- 
sary assistance  from  my  sister,4  the  wife  of  John 
Terry.  Striking  into  the  Simsbury  road  I  soon 
crossed  the  branch  of  the  little  river  on  a  tree 
that  subsequently  marked  the  boundary  line  of 
some  lands  which  I  received  in  exchange  for  a 
few  lots  upon  the  river,  but  after  climbing  the 
hill  on  the  other  side  of  the  brook  I  found  that 
the  moon  had  set  and  that  it  would  not  be  possi- 
ble to  cross  the  mountain  before  morning. 

While  in  a  quandary  as  to  where  to  spend  the 
balance  of  the  night  I  bethought  myself  of  the 
hollow  tree  in  the  Honey  Pot  Lot,6  which  al- 

*It  led  to  the  "Brick  Hill,"  or  clay  bank  through 
which  the  New  England  road  runs  north  of  Sigourney 
Street. 

"This  field  lay  north  of  the  "Brick  Hill"  and  ex- 
tended to  Albany  Avenue.  It  contained  about  35  acres. 

*  The  Cow  pasture  lay  west  of  Windsor  Avenue  and 
north  of  Albany  Avenue.  It  contained  about  1000  acres 
and  was  held  in  common  by  the  original  proprietors 
of  the  North  Side. 

4  Elizabeth  Wadsworth,  oldest  daughter  of  William 
Wadsworth  and  Eliza  Stone.  She  married  John  Terry 
of  Windsor.  They  moved  to  Simsbury  after  the  King 
Philip  war. 

'According  to  Aunt  Lucy  Wadsworth,  who  died 
August  30,  1900,  at  the  age  of  98  years  and  8  months, 


340  Wadsworth 

though  over  two  miles  from  where  I  was  stand- 
ing, was  preferable  to  perching  on  a  limb  to  keep 
out  of  the  way  of  bears,  wild  cats,  or  worse — men 
who  might  be  looking  for  me.  Following  the 
ridge  on  the  right  of  the  road  it  was  not  long 
before  I  located  the  tree  and  within  ten  minutes 
after  crawling  into  it,  was  sleeping  as  soundly 
as  though  Charter  troubles  were  unknown. 

The  sun  was  two  hours  high  when  I  awoke 
with  an  appetite  that  caused  Mistress  Wyllys' 
bread  and  beef  to  disappear  very  rapidly,  and 
after  washing  it  down  with  a  draught  from  a 
spring  on  the  hillside  a  short  distance  from  the 
hollow  tree,  I  turned  towards  the  mountain 
which  separated  me  from  Simsbury  and  the  beau- 
tiful Farmington  valley.  As  I  ascended  I  could 
see  the  smoke  from  the  chimneys  in  Hartford 
and  the  sight  of  it  brought  a  desire  to  know  what 
was  being  done  there  and  how  Mistress  Wyllys 
explained  my  unexpected  absence  to  my  wife 
and  children  at  their  home  Up  Neck.  After 

the  Honey  Pot  Lot  was  located  in  what  is  or  was  until 
recently  known  as  the  Ed  Kenyon  farm.  As  to  wheth- 
er a  pot  full  of  honey  or  sufficient  honey  to  fill  a  pot 
was  found  in  the  hollow  tree  she  never  knew,  but 
family  tradition,  and  her  great  age  carried  her  back 
to  those  who  had  seen  and  conversed  with  the  im- 
mediate descendants  of  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth, 
says  that  he  slept  at  that  place  in  a  hollow  tree  on 
the  night  that  the  Charter  was  taken  from  Andros. 


Hiding  the  Charter  341 

crossing-  the  Little  Phillip,  I  descended  to  the 
shelf  or  break  in  the  mountain  through  which 
the  crooked  Weatogue  Brook  rattles  over  the 
rocks,  while  on  my  left  Big  Phillip,  its  sides  al- 
ready darkening  with  the  shadows  of  the  after- 
noon, rose  to  the  horizon. 

As  I  had  no  desire  to  be  seen  in  Simsbury  I 
leisurely  climbed  the  steep  side  of  the  larger 
mountain  and  on  reaching  the  top,  descended  to 
King  Phillip's  cave.  It  is  an  oblong  hole  in  the 
face  of  a  cliff  about  twenty  feet  from  the  sum- 
mit and  into  which  it  penetrates  twelve  or  fifteen 
feet.  This  was  where  the  rebellious  Indian  hid 
when  going  to  or  coming  from,  I  do  not  now  re- 
member which,  a  visit  to  the  Mohawks  from 
whom,  after  the  destruction  of  the  Narragansett 
Fort,  he  sought  aid  in  his  war  with  the  English. 
Fortunately  he  did  not  succeed,  and  as  I  lay  there 
under  the  warm  November  sun  and  watched  the 
sunshine  and  shadow  playing  hide  and  seek  over 
the  valley  through  which  the  Farmington  River 
ran  like  a  broad  ribbon  of  silver,  I  could  not  in 
my  heart  blame  that  fearless  warrior,  even  if  he 
had  a  red  skin  and  tried  to  burn  our  homes,  for 
fighting  for  the  land  which  the  white  man  was 
taking  from  his  people,  occasionally  exchanging 
a  few  coats,  hoes,  axes  or  beads  for  a  territory 
broader  in  extent  than  the  domain  of  a  duke. 


342  Wadsworth 

The  Farmington  valley  never  appeared  to  be 
more  beautiful  than  it  did  that  day.  With 
the  setting  sun  the  blue  haze,  which  hung  over 
the  hills  during  the  afternoon,  changed  to  a  rose 
pink  and  finally  deepened  to  purple  as  the  fad- 
ing rays  of  light  spread  towards  the  Turkey 
Hills  and  Northington,1  while  the  trees  decked  in 
all  the  gaudy  colors  of  autumn  filled  in  a  picture 
that  is  still  fresh  in  my  memory.  As  the  eye 
turned  from  the  banks  of  the  river,  where  the  red 
leaves  of  the  soft  maple  and  the  sumac  nodded  to 
their  shadows  in  the  water,  it  passed  over  the 
golden  yellow  of  the  ash,  hard  maple  and  birch, 
the  russet  brown  of  the  oak  and  the  deep  green 
of  the  hemlock,  pine  and  balsam,  all  of  them  be- 
ing mingled  in  delightful  confusion,  until  near 
the  summit  of  the  mountain,  where  the 
trees  give  way  to  the  gray  moss  and  gnarled 
cedars,  which  appear  to  be  almost  black  when 
seen  from  the  valley.  Did  Moses,  when  he  stood 
on  Pisgah,  see  a  fairer  land  than  this? 

The  following  day,  as  I  sat  on  the  bank  of  the 
Weatogue  Brook  listening  to  the  music  of  the 
water  as  it  rattled  the  pebbles,  clattered  over  the 
rocks  and  finally  plunged  with  a  roar  to  the  level 
of  the  river,  an  Indian  came  and  stood  by  a 

1  Now  Avon. 


Hiding  the  Charter  343 

stunted  hemlock.  I  motioned  for  him  to  be  seat- 
ed, but  he  shook  his  head  and  said,  "None  of  our 
tribe  ever  sit  here."  When  I  appeared  to  be 
astonished  at  his  answer  he  told  me  that  he  was 
an  old  man  of  the  tribe  which  moved  from  Massa- 
coe1  when  the  English  came  and  settled  on  the 
Housatonic,  and  that  he  had  returned  to  once 
more  feast  his  eyes  on  the  scenes  of  his  childhood 
before  going  hence. 

I  also  gathered  from  him  that  many  years  be- 
fore the  white  man  came  to  the  big  river  the 
Indians  grew  their  corn  and  beans  in  the  valley 
of  the  Tunxis.2  That  one  year  the  rains  came 
and  destroyed  two  plantings,  the  river  then,  as 
now,  becoming  after  a  prolonged  storm  a  raging 
torrent.  At  this  time  one  of  the  sachems  of  the 
tribe  had  his  wigwam  on  a  little  knoll  near  the 
edge  of  the  stream,  and  as  a  consequence  he  lost 
not  only  his  plantings  of  corn  and  beans,  but  also 
his  place  of  shelter  and  all  his  belongings  which 
could  not  be  carried  in  canoes.  After  the  second 
flood  he  built  a  wigwam  on  the  ledge  of  the 
mountain  and  planted  corn  there  as  well  as  in  the 
valley.  As  there  were  no  more  storms  the  corn 
grew  from  both  plantings. 

1  Indian  name  of  Simsbury. 

*  Indian  name   of   the    Farmington    River. 


344  Wadsworth 

One  day,  when  the  corn  was  soft  in  the  ear, 
the  leaves  on  mountain  trees  were  seen  to  turn 
upwards  as  they  do  before  a  storm.  There  was 
no  wind,  but  still  the  leaves  rattled  like  the  pop- 
lar at  sunrise.  In  a  few  moments  the  earth  trem* 
bled  like  the  water  when  the  wind  touches  it 
softly.  Then  all  was  still.  Hobbamock,  the 
spirit  of  evil,  was  angry  with  his  people.  The 
next  day  the  young  men  who  hunted  on  the 
mountain  found  that  seams  had  appeared  in  the 
rocks  and  that  there  was  running  water  where 
there  had  always  been  dry  land.  Before  night  the 
low  places  in  this  depression  of  the  hills  were  un- 
der water  and  in  a  few  days  the  sachem's  corn  was 
destroyed  and  his  wigwam  afloat.  The  lake  on 
the  mountain  top  had  a  mate.  From  that  day 
none  of  the  Indians  would  rest  there.  The  old 
Indian  also  said  that  during  the  winter  the  ice 
split  the  rocks  so  that  the  water  ran  off,  leaving 
the  noisy  mountain  brook  and  fall  to  remind 
them  of  the  displeasure  of  their  god. 

Thursday  morning  the  messenger  that  my  sis- 
ter sent  to  Farmington  came  down  the  river  with 
the  news  that  John  Wadsworth  had  returned 
from  Hartford  with  a  commission  as  Justice  of 
the  Peace  under  the  new  Governor  and  that  Sir 
Edmund  Andros  and  his  troop  of  red  coats  had 


WEATOGUE   BROOK   FALLS 


Hiding  the  Charter  347 

departed  for  Fairfield  with  the  intention  of  swear- 
ing in  the  sheriffs  and  custom  officers  in  the  towns 
and  seaports.  When  the  information  was  com- 
municated to  me  I  started  for  Farmington,  where 
I  first  learned  what  happened  in  the  Council 
Chamber  after  the  lights  went  out.  My  brother 
told  me  that  Sir  Edmund  Andros  did  not  appear 
to  be  the  least  disconcerted  by  the  incident,  his' 
only  order  being  that  no  one  should  be  permitted 
to  leave  the  room  until  the  candles  were  relit.  In 
response  to  a  command  from  the  officer  at  the 
door,  Sandford  and  his  servants  hurried  in  with 
lights.  When  the  candles  were  replaced  in  the 
candelabra  and  lighted  it  was  found  that  there 
were  no  absentees,  but  that  the  Charter  had  dis- 
appeared. Leete  still  lay  on  the  table  and  fully 
half  an  hour  elapsed  before  he  recovered  con- 
sciousness. 

Andros  saw  at  a  glance  that  he  had  been 
tricked,  how  he  did  not  know,  and  he  was  too 
proud  to  inquire,  while  in  all  probability  he  con- 
sidered it  dangerous  or  possibly  useless  to  make 
a  search  for  the  parchment  which  had  caused 
him  so  much  annoyance.  With  a  sang  froid  and 
a  deliberation  for  which  my  brother  ever  after- 
wards admired  him,  Sir  Edmund  arose,  and  after 
saying  a  few  words  of  condolence  over  the  un- 


348  Wadsworth 

fortunate  incident,  he  remarked  that  there  was 
no  occasion  to  continue  the  meeting.  Then  ad- 
dressing Secretary  Allyn  he  ordered  him  to  make 
the  following  entry  in  the  records  of  the  Colony : 

His  Excellency,  Sir  Edmund  Andros  Knight, 
Captain  General  and  Governor  of  His  Majesty's 
Territories  and  Dominions  in  New  England  by 
order  of  His  Majesty  James  the  second  King  of 
England,  Scotland,  France  and  Ireland,  the 
thirty-first  of  October,  1687,  took  into  his  hands 
the  Government  of  this  Colony  of  Connecticut,  it 
being  by  His  Majesty  annexed  to  the  Massachu- 
setts and  other  Colonies  under  his  Excellencies 
Government.  Finis. 

My  brother  also  said  that  Andros  intended  to 
add  the  last  word  and  ordered  the  book  brought 
to  him  for  that  purpose,  but  when  he  tried  Sec- 
retary Allyn's  pen  he  found  that  he  could  not 
write  with  it.  He  therefore  instructed  him  to 
complete  the  record.1 

On  the  following  day  Sir  Edmund  Andros  sent 
for  Governor  Treat  and  Secretary  Allyn  and  ad- 
vised them  of  his  plans.  They  communicated 

1  It  has  been  repeatedly  stated,  on  what  authority 
does  not  appear,  that  this  record,  or  at  least  the  word 
"Finis"  was  written  by  Andros  himself.  A  glance  at 
the  original  is  sufficient  to  show  that  it  is  throughout 
in  the  handwriting  of  Secretary  Allyn. — J.  Hammond 
Trumbull. 


Hiding  the  Charter  349 

them  to  the  Assistants  and  Deputies  who  were 
still  in  Hartford,  and  a  little  before  noon  all  of 
them  repaired  to  the  Ordinary  where  His  Ex- 
cellency lodged  and  escorted  him  with  the  mem- 
bers of  his  council  to  the  Meeting  House  where 
the  occasion  of  his  coming  was  publicly  stated. 
He  also  commanded  His  Majesty's  letters  patent 
for  the  government  of  New  England  and  His 
Majesty's  orders  to  His  Excellency  for  annexing 
the  Colony  of  Connecticut  to  the  Dominion  of 
New  England  and  to  take  the  same  under  his 
government  to  be  publicly  read.1  After  this  was 
done  Robert  Treat  and  John  Allyn  were  sworn 
members  of  His  Majesty's  council.  On  the  fol- 

1  Being  arrived  at  Hartford,  he  (Andros)  is  greeted 
and  caressed  by  the  governor  and  assistants,  (whose 
part  it  was,  being  the  heads  of  the  people,  to  be  most 
active  in  what  was  now  to  be  done,)  and  some  say, 
though  I  will  not  confidently  assert  it,  that  the  govern- 
or and  one  of  his  assistants  did  declare  to  him  the 
vote  of  the  general  court  for  their  submission  to  him. 
However,  after  some  treaty  between  his  excellency 
and  them  that  evening,  he  was  the  next  morning 
waited  on  and  conducted  by  the  governor,  deputy 
governor,  assistants  and  deputies,  to  the  court  cham- 
ber, and  by  the  governor  himself  directed  to  the  gov- 
ernor's seat;  and  being  there  seated,  (the  late  governor, 
assistants  and  deputies  being  present,  and  the  cham- 
ber thronged  as  full  of  people  as  it  was  capable  of,) 
his  excellency  declared,  that  his  majesty  had,  accord- 
ing to  their  desire,  given  him  a  commission  to  come 
and  take  on  him  the  government  of  Connecticut,  and 
caused  his  commission  to  be  publickly  read. — Gershom 
Bulkeley's  Will  and  Doom. 


350  Wadsworth 

lowing  day  His  Excellency's  council  named  the 
Justices  of  the  Peace  and  Sheriffs  for  Hartford, 
New  Haven,  New  London  and  Fairfield  Coun- 
ties and  marched  out  of  town. 

I  returned  to  Hartford  on  Friday  and  the  fol- 
lowing night  removed  the  Charter  from  the  hol- 
low oak  and  concealed  it  in  a  candle  box1  which 
was  fitted  into  the  stone  foundation  of  my  house. 

1 A  tradition  of  the  Cook  family  of  Harwinton, 
Conn.,  states  that  "Captain  Wadsworth  and  Captain 
Cyprian  Nichols,  of  Hartford,  agreed  that  they  would 
try  to  save  the  charter;  that  Wadsworth  gave  Captain 
Nichols  the  choice  of  whether  he  would  undertake  to 
extinguish  the  candles  or  hide  the  charter.  Nichols 
chose  the  former,  and  upon  receiving  a  prearranged 
signal,  personally  and  by  others  extinguished  all  of  the 
lights  in  the  Council  Chamber,  and  that  Captain  Wads- 
worth  seized  the  charter,  secreted  it  in  the  oak,  com- 
ing back  as  quickly  as  possible.  Late  that  night,  or 
very  soon  thereafter  at  the  dead  of  night,  Captain 
Wadsworth  brought  the  charter  to  his  own  house  with 
the  intention  of  secreting  it  there,  without  anyone 
knowing  of  that  fact.  Upon  his  arriving  home,  to  his 
dismay,  he  found  that  his  wife  had  been  suddenly 
taken  ill  with  the  colic,  and  he  had  to  impart  to  her  or 
some  other  member  of  the  family  the  nature  of  his  em- 
ployment, and  thereupon  the  charter,  placed  in  an  old 
candle-box,  was  secreted  in  the  corner  of  Captain 
Wadsworth's  cellar,  and  the  earth  replaced  in  such  a 
way  as  to  thoroughly  conceal  it.  His  injunctions  to 
the  person  to  whom  his  secret  had  to  be  disclosed  were 
that  if  anything  should  happen  to  him,  they  should 
communicate  to  Captain  Cyprian  Nichols  the  secret  of 
its  hiding-place."  This  version  is  traced  to  Captain 
Joseph  Wadsworth's  daughter  Hannah.  She  told  it  to 
her  grandson  Allan  Cook,  who  repeated  it  to  R.  Man- 
ning Chipman,  author  of  the  History  of  Harwinton. 


Hiding  the  Charter  351 

It  remained  there  unasked  for,  as  but  few  in  the 
Colony  knew  what  had  become  of  it  when  it  dis- 
appeared so  mysteriously  from  the  Council  Cham- 
ber on  All  Hallow  E'en  in  1687,  until  the  May 
session  of  the  General  Court  in  1698,  when  I 
showed  it  to  the  Governor  and  Council  and  was 
instructed  to  retain  it  until  further  orders.  The 
original  at  that  time  was  in  the  hands  of  Sam- 
uel Wyllys,  it  having  been  brought  back  to  Hart- 
ford by  Andrew  Leete  and  read  to  the  freemen 
on  May  9,  1689,  when  for  the  peace  and  safety  of 
these  parts  the  government  was  re-established, 
as  it  was  before  Sir  Edmund  Andros  took  it. 
From  May,  1698,  to  May,  1715,  the  duplicate 
charter  lay  in  its  box  in  the  cellar.  Over  twenty- 
seven  years  had  elapsed  since  it  was  taken  from 
the  Council  Chamber,  and  as  almost  all  of  those 
who  participated  in  those  stirring  incidents  had 
passed  away  I  deemed  it  advisable  to  return  it  to 
the  Governor  and  General  Court,  which  after  a 
conference,  passed  the  following  resolution  :* 

1  The  resolution  in  the  original  paper  is  thus  en- 
dorsed by  the  clerks:  "Past  in  the  Lower  House. 
Test.  Sam'll  Cooke  Clerk.  Past  in  the  Upper  House 
in  the  Negative.  Test.  Hez:  Wyllys,  Secty."  The 
Committee  of  Conference  are  noted,  to  wit,  Matthew 
Allyn,  Roger  Woolcott,  and  John  Clarke.  Their  agree- 
ment, viz.:  twenty  shillings  to  Capt.  Wadsworth  for  the 
services  mentioned  in  the  Resolution,  is  also  noted  and 
the  following  additional  endorsements  occur:  "Past  in 
the  Upper  House.  Test.  Hez:  Wyllys.  Secry.  Past  in 


352  Wadsworth 

"Upon  consideration  of  the  faithful  and  good 
service  of  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth  of  Hart- 
ford, especially  in  securing  the  duplicate  Char- 
ter1 of  this  Colony  in  a  very  troublesome  season 

the  Lower  House.  Test.  Sam'll  Cooke,  Clerk."  The 
amendment,  viz:  "twenty  shillings,"  is  in  the  hand- 
writing of  Secretary  Wyllys. 

See  in  Original  Papers,  Finance  and  Currency,  Vol. 
I,  No.  TZ\  also  Col.  Rec.  Vol.  IV,  p.  351. 

1  It  was  the  custom  in  the  time  of  Charles  II.,  as  in- 
deed it  is  today,  especially  in  England  to  execute  im- 
portant documents  in  duplicate,  or  even  in  triplicate, 
so  that  if  one  should  be  lost  in  transmission  across  the 
ocean,  the  others  might  be  preserved.  Albert  C.  Bates, 
the  Librarian  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Society, 
sends  me  the  following  note  in  reference  to  the  two 
Connecticut  Charters:  "Much  confusion,  it  seems  to 
me,  has  arisen  from  the  diverse  and  indefinite  meanings 
of  some  of  the  terms  most  frequently  used  in  speaking 
or  writing  of  these  charters.  Two  charters,  each  sup- 
posed to  be  the  exact  counterpart  of  the  other,  were 
made  out  and  signed  and  both  were  sealed  on  May 
10,  1662.  In  law  each  was  an  original  and  each  was 
equally  valid.  Of  course  in  "passing  the  seals,"  the 
final  process  in  establishing  their  authenticity,  both 
could  not  have  been  sealed  at  the  same  moment,  one 
must  have  preceded  the  other,  and  this  first  one  is  the 
historical  original.  But  only  in  this  strict  and  limited 
historical  sense  can  either  one  be  designated  as  "the 
original  charter."  In  the  common  usage  of  words  both 
are  originals  and  either  one  might  be  called  the  origi- 
nal, the  other  being  then  called  the  duplicate.  And  in 
fact  each  is  called  "the  duplicate"  in  the  charters  them- 
selves, this  phrase  occurring  in  both  documents:  "these 
our  letters  Patent,  or  the  Duplicate  or  Exemplificacon 
thereof."  The  word  duplicate  meaning  simply  the 
other — the  one  not  at  hand — the  one  not  under  discus- 
sion— whichever  one  of  the  two  that  might  happen  to 
be.  The  word  is  used  in  exactly  this  sense  at  the 


Hiding  the  Charter  353 

when  our  Constitution  was  struck  at,  and  in 
safety  keeping  and  preserving  the  same  ever 
since  unto  this  day,  the  assembly  does,  as  a  token 

present  time  by  English  historical  writers  in  reference 
to  similar  documents  of  which  more  than  one  original 
was  made.  The  identity  of  the  "historical  original" 
charter,  the  one  which  first  receive  the  attachment  of 
the  "broad  seal"  of  the  realm,  has  been  recently  settled 
by  the  discovery  in  the  English  archives  of  the  record 
of  the  fees  paid  for  the  two  documents.  For  "the 
charter,"  that  is  the  one  first  sealed,  a  charge  of  8£  gS. 
was  made  with  a  further  "fee  thereupon"  of  s£,  and 
for  "the  duplicate"  charter  a  charge  of  i  £  48.  Un- 
fortunately a  large  portion  of  one  of  the  two  charters 
is  missing,  but  three  copies  of  it  are  extant,  all  made 
at  an  early  date.  Each  of  these  three  copies  has  at 
the  end  following  the  signature  the  words  "per  fine 
five  pounds,"  thus  establishing  this  as  being  the  one 
upon  which  the  fee  was  paid  and  therefore  as  the  his- 
torical original.  That  the  one  now  imperfect  is  the  one 
upon  which  the  words  "per  fine  five  pounds"  were 
written,  there  is  the  negative  evidence  that  they  do  not 
appear  upon  the  other  one  which  is  complete  and  per- 
fect, also  the  positive  evidence  that  from  each  of  the 
three  copies  two  words  are  missing  which  in  the  now 
imperfect  original  are  interlined  in  so  fine  a  hand  that 
they  might  easily  escape  the  notice  of  all  but  the  most 
careful  copyist.  The  imperfect  charter,  the  historical 
original,  has  for  many  years  reposed  in  "the  charter 
box"  in  the  rooms  of  the  Connecticut  Historical  Socie- 
ty; the  complete  charter,  the  historical  duplicate,  is 
exhibited  in  the  Connecticut  State  Library  at  the  Capi- 
tol." 

The  duplicate  charter  was  written  on  three  skins  and 
the  original  on  two.  The  following  note  in  reference 
to  the  latter  appears  in  the  third  volume  of  the  Colonial 
Records:  In  1817  or  1818,  while  John  Boyd,  who  was 
afterwards  Secretary  of  State,  was  preparing  for  col- 
lege, at  the  Hartford  Grammar  School,  he  boarded  in 
the  family  of  Rev.  Dr.  Flint  of  the  South  Church. 


354  Wadsworth 

of  their  grateful  resentment  of  such — his  faithful 
and  good  services,  grant  him  out  of  the  Colony 
treasury  the  sum  of  twenty  shillings." 

Coming  in  one  day  from  school,  he  noticed  on  the 
workstand  of  Mrs.  Bissell,  the  doctor's  mother-in-law, 
a  dingy  piece  of  parchment  covered  on  one  side  with 
black-letter  manuscript.  In  answer  to  his  inquiries, 
Mrs.  Bissell  told  him  that  having  occasion  for  some 
pasteboard,  her  friend  and  neighbor  Mrs.  Wyllys  had 
sent  her  this.  Mr.  Boyd  proposed  to  procure  her  a 
piece  of  pasteboard  in  exchange  for  the  parchment,  to 
which  Mrs.  Bissell  consented.  It  was  not,  however, 
until  six  or  eight  years  had  elapsed  that  Mr.  Boyd 
examined  the  parchment  with  care,  when  for  the  first 
time  he  learned  what  its  contents  were."  This  inci- 
dent recalls  how  the  seared  and  yellow  copy  of  the 
Magna  Charta — now  in  the  British  Museum — was 
saved  by  chance  from  the  scissors  of  a  tailor.  Struck 
by  the  great  seals  attached  to  a  piece  of  parchment  the 
tailor  was  cutting,  Sir  Robert  Colton  stopped  the  man 
and  gave  him  fourpence  for  the  document.  It  is  now 
lined  and  mounted  in  a  glass  case,  the  seal  a  shapeless 
mass  of  wax  and  the  characters  illegible. 


THE    MAN 


THE  MAN 


There  are  no  paintings  or  illustrations  of  any 
character  of  the  founders  of  Connecticut.  In  all 
the  other  Colonies  there  are  a  few  faces  that  have 
been  handed  down  to  posterity,  while  this  solitary 
exception  is  also  the  only  one  which  retained  its 
identity  from  the  beginning  of  its  government 
up  to  the  present.  The  Charter  granted  by 
Charles  II.  in  1662,  as  is  well  known,  succeeded 
the  Fundamental  Orders  and  remained  in  force 
even  under  the  aegis  of  the  United  States  of 
America1  until  1818,  when  the  present  Constitu- 

1  After  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  at  a  General 
Assembly  held  in  New  Haven  on  the  second  Thursday 
of  October,  1776,  the  following  resolution  was  adopted: 
"Resolved  by  this  Assembly:  That  they  approve  of  the 
Declaration  of  Independence,  published  by  said  Con- 
gress, and  that  this  Colony  is  and  of  right  ought  to  be 
a  free  and  independent  State,  and  the  inhabitants  there- 
of are  absolved  from  all  allegiance  to  the  British  crown, 
and  all  political  connections  between  them  and  the 
Kin?  of  Great  Britain  are,  and  ought  to  be,  totally 
dissolved.  And  be  it  enacted  by  the  Governor,  Coun- 
cil and  representatives  in  General  Court  assembled,  and 
by  authority  of  the  same,  that  the  form  of  civil  govern- 
ment in  this  State  shall  continue  to  be  as  established 
by  charter  received  from  Charles  II.,  King  of  England, 
so  far  as  an  adherence  to  the  same  will  be  consistent 
with  an  absolute  independence  of  this  State  on  the 
Crown  of  Great  Britain,  and  that  all  officers,  civil  and 
military,  heretofore  appointed  by  this  State  continue  in 
the  execution  of  their  several  offices,  and  the  laws  of 
the  State  shall  continue  in  force  until  otherwise 
ordered." 


358  Wadsworth 

tion  was  adopted.  There  is  a  painting  of  John 
Winthrop,  Jr.,  from  which  thousands  of  prints 
have  been  made,  while  nothing  but  a  legend  and 
the  record  of  a  few  of  his  acts  remain  of  Captain 
Joseph  Wadsworth,  who  "secured  the  Charter  of 
the  Colony  in  a  very  troublesome  season,"  and 
who  stands  out  boldly  as  the  first  genuine  hero 
born  in  New  England.  From  these  acts,  all  of 
which  have  been  gathered  for  this  chapter,  the 
reader  can  call  up  the  rugged  soldier  in  homespun 
who  in  his  day  tilled  the  soil  of  Connecticut, 
fought  the  Indians,  risked  his  life  in  defense  of 
the  Colony's  rights,  defied  a  Colonial  Governor 
and  was  finally  in  his  old  age  admitted  to  the  bar, 
where  he  was  time  and  again  called  on  to  de- 
fend himself  in  suits  which  could  be  traced  to  his 
high  temper  and  sledge  hammer  manner  in  set- 
tling disputes. 

Born  in  1648,  being  the  third  child  of  William 
Wadsworth  and  his  second  wife  Eliza  Stone, 
Joseph  Wadsworth  became  a  freeman  of  the 
Colony  October  12,  1676,  by  order  of  the  General 
Court,  his  two  brothers,  Samuel  and  Thomas,  be- 
ing admitted  on  the  same  date.1  The  King  Philip 

1  At  a  Court  of  Election  Held  at  Hartford,  May  n: 
1676.  Propownded  for  freemen;  John  Steele,  Tho: 
Tompson,  John  Norton,  Samll  Lewes,  John  Howkins, 
Phillip  Jud,  Mr.  Beltcher,  Lnt.  Jos:  Wadsworth,  Samll 
Wadsworth,  Tho:  Wadsworth,  Wm.  Burnam,  John 


The  Man  359 

war  was  being  waged  when  the  three  brothers 
were  "propownded  for  freemen"  and  that  Joseph 
was  taking  an  active  part  in  it  is  shown  by  the 
following  orders  of  the  Council : 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  Councill,  Held  at  Hartford, 
Septr.  6th,  1675.  Wm.  Leet  Esq.  Dep.  Govr;  Major 
John  Tallcott,  Mr.  Henry  Woolcott,  Capt.  John  Allyn, 
Capt.  Tho:  Topping,  Capt.  Benj:  Newbery,  Mr.  John 
Wadsworth. 

The  Councill  ordered  that  Sarjt.  Joseph  Wadsworth 
should  take  under  his  conduct  twenty  men,  and  pass 
up  to  Westfield,  to  assist  them  against  the  common 
cnemie,  with  this  following  comn: — 

To  Joseph  Wadsworth,  Sarjt. 

In  his  Maties  Name  you  are  required  to  take  under 
your  conduct  those  dragoones  now  present,  and  lead 
them  forth  up  to  Westfeild,  there  to  assist  in  the  de- 
fending of  the  sayd  Westfeild  against  the  common 
enemie,  and  there  to  continue  till  you  receiue  further 
order  from  the  Councill  here,  or  are  called  forth  to  the 
army  by  Major  Treat  or  some  of  the  cheife  command- 
ers of  or  army.  Allso,  in  case  you  hear  that  any  of 
or  plantations  are  assaulted  by  the  enemie,  you  are 
forthwith  to  post  away  to  releiue  the  place  or  planta- 
tions assaulted;  and  in  case  you  should  be  assaulted 
in  the  way,  you  are  to  use  your  utmost  endeauor  to 
defend  yourselues  and  to  destroy  the  enemie. 

This  signed  pr  the  Secretary. 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  Council,  at  Hartford,  Septr.  9, 
1675.  Wm.  Leete  Esq.  Dept.  Govr;  Major  John  Tall- 

Olcott,  John  Pantry,  Jonath:  Bull  and  Samll  Olmsteed, 
Wm.  Waller. — Colonial  Records. 

At  a  Session  of  the  Genii  Court,  October  12:  1676,  in 
Hartford.  Those  formerly  presented  for  freemen  last 
Court,  viz.  Mr.  Wadsworth  three  sons,  Samll,  Joseph 
&  Tho:,  and  John  Pantry,  are  admitted  for  freemen. — 
Colonial  Records. 


360  Wadsworth 

cott,  Mr.  Henry  Woolcott,  Capt.  John  Allyn,  Major 
Robt  Treat,  Capt.  Benj:  Newbery,  Mr.  John  Wads- 
worth. 

Major  Robt  Treat  being  returned  from  the  army, 
and  informeing  us  that  the  Gentn  from  the  Bay  haue 
ordered  that  all  their  forces  shall  be  called  out  of  the 
feild,  up  the  riuer,  and  their  townes  garrisoned  as 
they  may;  and  allso,  that  of  those  forces  that  went 
hence  there  is  left  about  forty  at  Hatfeild,  and  some  at 
Northampton,  and  some  at  Westfeild,  are  desired  to  be 
continued;  the  Councill  doth  grant  that  if  it  be  desired, 
there  be  twenty-six  left  at  Westfeild,  under  conduct  of 
Ens:  John  Miles,  and  sixteen  left  at  Springfeild,  under 
conduct  of  Lnt  John  Standly;  anf  the  rest  both  those 
that  went  with  Sarjt  Joseph  Wadsworth  and  wth  John 
Grant  to  return  forthwith;  and  accordingly  order  was 
sent  to  Lnt  John  Standly  and  to  Ens.  John  Miles. 

At  a  Meeting  of  the  Council,  January  14,  1676. 
Wm.  Leet  Esq.  Dept.  Govr;  Mr.  Samll  Willys,  Major 
Jno  Tallcott,  Mr.  James   Richards,   Capt,  John  Allyn, 
Mr.  Richd  Lord. 

The  Council  appoynted  John  Standly  Captaine  of 
part  of  the  forces  belonging  to  Hartford  County;  and 
Joseph  Wadsworth  to  be  his  Liuetenant. 

This  apointment  was  no  doubt  made  to  fill  one 
of  the  vacancies  created  by  the  loss  which  the 
Connecticut  troops  sustained  in  the  Narragansett 
fort  fight  and  in  which  Joseph  Wadsworth  in  all 
probability  participated.  The  following  anecdote 
dates  from  the  same  period : 

Shortly  after  Joseph  Wadsworth's  return  from 
an  expedition  to  Farmington  against  the  Indians, 
a  man  from  Wethersfield,  who  was  personally 
hostile  to  him,  had  occasion  to  call  on  Hezekiah 
Wyllys,  the  Secretary  of  Connecticut.  The  late 


The  Man  363 

expedition  to  Farmington  soon  becoming  a  topic 
of  conversation,  this  Wethersfield  citizen  took  the 
opportunity  to  say  that  Wadsworth  behaved  like 
a  coward  in  the  affair.  Shortly  after  this  remark 
was  uttered,  Wadsworth  himself  happened  also 
to  call  on  Mr.  Wyllys.  He  came  in  quietly,  and 
Mr.  Wyllys,  with  whom  he  was  a  great  favorite, 
without  appearing  to  notice  his  entrance,  peered 
over  his  spectacles,  and  inquisitively  addressing 
Wadsworth's  accuser,  repeated  his  remark.  "So 
you  said  just  now,"  he  proceeded,  "that  Joseph 
Wadsworth  behaved  like  a  coward  at  Farming- 
ton?"  The  reviler  turned  pale  at  once — attempted 
to  stammer  out  some  apology — and  began  retreat- 
ing towards  the  door.  The  moment  Wadsworth, 
however,  became  acquainted  with  the  offensive 
charge — there  on  the  spot — in  the  lower  front 
west  parlor  of  the  Wyllys  mansion,  and  in  the 
dignified  presence  of  Mr.  Wyllys  himself,  who 
obviously  anticipated  some  amusing  result — he 
fell  upon  his  accuser,  and  gave  him  a  most  severe, 
and  exemplary  whipping.1 

During  the  next  twenty  years  Joseph  Wads- 

1  This  anecdote  was  told  I.  W.  Stewart  by  Peter 
Thatcher.  He  had  it  from  Stephen  Mix  Mitchell  of 
Wethersfield,  to  whom  it  was  communicated  by  George 
Wyllys,  a  son  of  Hezekiah  Wyllys.  It  appears  in  one 
of  the  Stewart  manuscripts  owned  by  the  Connecticut 
Historical  Society  and  is  published  by  permission. 


364  Wadsworth 

worth's  name  appears  in  the  following  entries  in 
the  Hartford  Town  Votes  : 

Dec.  29,  1676. 

(Lieu.   Joseph   Wadsworth. 
£££  tt 
Steven  Hosmore. 

December  1679. 

Lieu.  Joseph  Wadsworth. 
j 


December  23,   1684. 
Townsmen  on  North  Side  j 

January  15,  1684-5. 

Att  ye  Same  Meeting  ye  Towne  made  choyce  of  Mr. 
Sepren  Nickeules,  Lieu.  Joseph  Wadsworth  &  Insign 
Nathll  Standly  to  bee  Added  to  Mair  Tallcott  &  Capt. 
Alyn  As  a  Comitty  for  ye  Scooll  in  Hartford. 

Hartford  Town  Votes,  p.  214. 

December  24,  1685. 

Granted  permission  with  Philip  Lewis  Liberty  to 
build  a  warehouse  next  to  Hartford  landing  place. 

February  28,  1689-90.  Coll.  John  Allyn,  Mr.  Bar- 
tholomew Barnard,1  Lieu.  Joseph  Wadsworth,  and 
Capt.  Caleb  Stanly  were  chosen  a  committee  to  make 
up  the  fortyfications  about  Mr.  Bartholomew  Barnard's 
House. 

1  Bartholomew  Barnard  lived  on  Sentinel  Hill. 
Joseph  Wadsworth  married  his  daughter  Elizabeth, 
who  was  the  mother  of  his  children,  Joseph,  Jonathan, 
who  died  in  infancy,  Ichabod,  Elizabeth,  Hannah  and 
Jonathan.  After  her  death,  which  occurred  October 
26,  1710,  Joseph  Wadsworth  married  Elizabeth  Talcott, 
and  upon  her  death  he  made  his  third  venture  by 
marrying  Thomas  Welles'  widow  Mary,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Blackleach.  She  survived  him. 


The  Man  365 

December   16,   1690. 

(Joseph   Wadsworth. 
?oeSaeCp0hB*"SOn- 
Jacob  White. 

December  23,  1696. 

(Joseph  Wadsworth. 
CanpTNfcahof°rd- 
Henry  Hayward. 

January  26,  1691-2. 

Approved  of  Caleb  Stanly  bearing  50  Ibs.  of  Powder 
&  220  of  lead  for  expedition  to  Deerfield  &  Albany. 

January  17,  1695-6.  On  Committee  in  behalfe  of 
Town  of  Hartford  with  John  Allyn,  Caleb  Stanly,  Cep- 
rian  Nickols,  Joseph  Bull. 

The  interruption  in  the  Government  through 
the  interference  of  Sir  Edmund  Andros  occurred 
during  this  period,  and  while  he  retained  it  John 
Allyn,  who  was  appointed  a  member  of  His  Maj- 
esty's Council,  wrote  him  as  follows :  "Sir,  I  allso 
make  bold  to  inform  your  Excelency  that  if  you 
please  to  make  Lnt  Joseph  Wadsworth  Lieuten- 
ant of  the  company  of  the  North  Side  of  or 
Towne  &  Mr.  Niccols  of  the  Sowth  side,  it  will 
be  most  accomadating  to  the  people  as  their  habi- 
tations are  settled." 

This  is  the  only  reference  to  Joseph  Wads- 
worth  in  the  Colonial  Records  from  that  time 
until  he  appeared  at  the  meeting  of  the  Governor 
and  Council  at  Hartford  on  May  25,  1698,  other 


366  Wadsworth 

than  that  he  is  named  as  a  Deputy  for  Hartford 
in  1694  and  1695,  his  first  services  as  a  member 
of  that  body  being  rendered  in  1685. 

Att  a  Meeting  of  the  Governr  and  Councill  in  Hart- 
ford, May  25t,  1698  The  duplicate  of  the  Pattent  by 
order  from  the  Governr  and  Councill  being  brought 
by  Captn  Joseph  Wadsworth,  and  he  affirming  that  he 
had  order  from  the  Genrll  Assembly  to  be  the  keeper 
of  it,  the  Governr  and  Councill  concluded  that  it  should 
remain  in  his  custodie  till  the  Generall  Assembly  or  the 
Councill  should  see  cause  to  order  otherwise,  and  the 
sd  duplicate  was  deliverd  to  him  by  the  order  of  the 
Councill. 

There  is  nothing  in  the  records  to  show  when 
the  General  Assembly  made  the  doughty  Captain 
the  keeper  of  the  duplicate  charter,  but  if  such  an 
order  had  not  been  issued  there  were  men  at  this 
meeting  who  could  have  objected  to  such  an  en- 
try, which  again  called  attention  to  Wadsworth's 
exploits,  and  resulted  in  his  re-election  as  a  Dep- 
uty in  1699,  after  which  he  served  on  the.  follow- 
ing committees: 

A    Generall    Assembly    Holden    at    Hartford,    Octobr 

I2th,  1699. 

Mr.  Will  Pitkin,  Captn  John  Chester,  Mr.  Nehemiah 
Palmer,  Captn  Thomas  Hart,  and  Captn  Joseph  Wads- 
worth,  or  the  majr  part  of  them,  are  by  this  Assembly 
chosen  a  committee  to  take  care  of  the  countries  in- 
terest in  the  undivided  lands,  and  to  indevour  the  pre- 
venting and  detecting  all  illegal  trading  with  the  natives 
for  land,  and  to  implead  such  persons  as  have  tres- 
passed upon  the  countries  land  by  intrusion. 


The  Man  367 

Att  a  Court  of  Election  Holden  at  Hartford,  May  the 

pth,  1700. 

Whereas  this  Assembly  did  in  October  last  did  ap- 
point and  impower  William  Pitkin  Esqr,  Captn  Thomas 
Hart,  Mr.  Nehemiah  Palmer,  Captn  John  Chester,  and 
Captn  Joseph  Wadsworth,  or  the  majr  part  of  them, 
a  committee  to  enquire  after  all  such  persons  as  have 
entred  upon  any  countrey  lands  without  any  just  right 
derived  from  this  Assembly;  this  assembly  doth  con- 
tinue the  said  comittee  in  that  trust  to  proceed  therein 
and  to  make  their  return  to  this  Assembly  in  October 
next. 
Att  a  Court  of  Election  Holden  at  Hartford,  May  the 

8th,  1701. 

This  Assembly  doth  appoint  and  impower  William 
Pitkin  Esqr,  Captn  Thomas  Hart,  Nehemiah  Palmer, 
Captn  John  Chester,  Captn  Joseph  Wadsworth,  and 
Sarjt  Caleb  Stanley,  or  any  three  of  them  to  be  a  com- 
mittee in  behalfe  of  this  corporation  to  make  diligent 
search  and  inquirie  after  all  such  persons  as  have 
made  any  unlawfull  entries  upon  any  of  the  countries 
land,  not  having  a  just  right  thereunto  by  grant  from 
this  Assembly;  especially  after  such  persons  as  have 
made  any  unlawfull  entries  upon  the  lands  situate  in 
the  northeast  parts  of  this  Colonie;  to  continue  in  that 
service  during  the  Courts  pleasure,  and  to  make  pre- 
sentment from  time  to  time  in  this  Assembly  of  all 
persons  that  they  shall  find  guiltie  of  making  such 
unlawfull  entries  and  incroachments  upon  the  countries 
lands  as  is  beforementioned. 

In  May,  1703,  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth  was 
again  named  as  one  of  the  Deputies  for  Hartford 
in  the  Lower  House  of  the  General  Assembly, 


368  Wadsworth 

notwithstanding  the  fact  that  he  had  opposed 
the  Constable  of  Hartford  the  preceding:  Febru- 
ary when  that  important  official  was  making  an 
effort  to  arrest  a  fugitive  slave.  He  was  also  re- 
elected  in  1704  and  1705.  The  following  are  the 
only  entries  concerning  him  in  the  records  cov- 
ered by  the  three  years  and  they  show  very 
plainly  that  the  old  warrior  must  have  lost  his 
temper  while  pleading  Phillip  Pain's  case  and  that 
he  made  amply  apology  for  his  misbehaviour 
after  the  smoke  of  battle  had  blown  away : 

Att  a  Genrll  Assembly  Holden  att  New  Haven  Octo- 
ber the  I4th,  1703,  and  Continued  by  Adjournment  to 
the  End  of  the  22d  Day  of  the  same  Month. 

Capt.  Joseph  Wadsworth  appeaing  in  this  Assembly 
in  the  behalfe  of  Mr.  Phillip  Pain  who  complained 
against  Wiliam  Pitkin  Esqr,  Assistant,  for  male-ad- 
ministration in  his  proceeding  against  said  Pain  for 
forcible  deteiner,  in  ye  debate  upon  which  case  the 
said  Joseph  Wadsworth  used  reproachful  words  against 
Mr.  Pitkin  and  the  sentence  by  him  passed  upon  said 
Pain,  saying  in  open  Assembly  that  his  proceedings 
in  the  case  were  altogether  unjust  and  illegall,  and  also 
did  cast  forth  reproachfull  expressions  against  divers 
members  of  the  Assembly,  for  which  his  misbehaviour 
this  Assembly  by  force  of  the  lawe  title  Magistrates, 
doe  sentence  the  said  Wadsworth  to  pay  a  fine  of  ten 
pounds  to  the  publick  Ireasurie  of  the  Colonie. 

At  a  Generall  Assembly  Holden  at  Newhaven  Octo- 
ber the  I2th,  1/04,  and  Continued  by  Adjournments  to 
the  24th  day  of  the  Same  Month. 


The  Man  369 

This  Court  upon  the  request  of  Capt.  Joseph  Wads- 
worth  doe  remit  a  fine  of  ten  pounds  ladi  upon  him 
by  the  General!  Court  in  October  last,  he  havinsr  made 
reflexions  upon  himselfe. 

After  acting  as  one  of  the  Selectmen  for  the 
town  of  Hartford  in  1706  Captain  Wadsworth 
again  dropped  out  of  sight  until  May  27,  when  at 
a  meeting  of  the  Court  of  Assistants,  which  at 
this  time  corresponded  in  most  respects  with  the 
present  Supreme  Court  of  Connecticut,  the  fol- 
lowing became  part  of  the  record. 

"Capt.  Joseph  Wadsworth  of  Hartford  was  arrested 
and  brought  before  this  Court  to  answer  for  that  on 
the  27th  of  May,  1708,  in  the  forenoon,  he,  the  said 
Wadsworth,  being  in  the  gallery  of  the  Meetinghouse 
in  Hartford,  under  the  Court  Chamber  where  the 
Governor  and  Council  were  sitting,  and  in  discourse 
with  Mr.  Ichabod  Wells  Sheriff  of  the  County  of  Hart- 
ford, did  say  to  him  the  said  Sheriff,  "if  you  come  to 
me,  and  I  tender  you  estate  and  you  will  not  take  it, 
but  take  any  other  of  my  estate,  I  will  break  your 
head,  or  knock  you  down." 

"And  the  said  Joseph  Wadsworth  being  then  imme- 
diately summoned  before  the  Governor  and  Council, 
and  questioned  for  his  so  speaking,  he  answered  and 
said  that  the  words  he  said  to  the  Sheriff  were  if  any 
Officer  should  come  to  him,  and  he  should  tender  him 
estate  enough,  and  the  Officer  would  notwithstanding 
wreck  his  Estate,  he  would  knock  him  down. 

"Which  threatening  speeches  are  unlawful  and  a 
breach  of  the  peace.  And  now  the  sd  Joseph  was  ex- 
amined and  convict  thereof  by  his  own  confession. 


370  Wadsworth 

"This  Court  have  considered  the  case,  and  do  order 
and  sentence  the  said  Joseph  Wadsworth  to  stand  com- 
mitted until  he  shall  find  surety  to  be  bound  with  him 
before  this  Court  in  a  Recognisance  of  twenty  pounds 
lawful  money,  conditioned  for  his  peaceable  and  good 
behaviour  towards  all  her  Majesties  subjects,  and 
especially  her  Officers,  until  the  next  session  of  this 
Court  to  be  held  at  Newhaven  in  October  next  ensuing. 

"The  said  Joseph  Wadsworth  and  also  Thomas 
Wadsworth  of  Hartford  before  this  Court  acknowl- 
edged themselves  to  stand  jointly  and  severally  bound 
to  the  Public  Treasurer  of  this  Colony  in  a  Recog- 
nisance of  twenty  pounds  lawful  money  of  the  same,  to 
be  levied  on  their  goods,  chattels  or  lands. 

"The  condition  whereof  is  that  the  said  Joseph 
Wadsworth  shall  be  of  peaceable  and  good  behaviour 
towards  all  her  Majesty's  subjects,  and  especially  her 
officer,  until  the  next  Session  of  this  Court,  to  be 
holden  at  Newhaven  in  October  next." 

In  1712,  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth  at  the  ripe 
age  of  sixty-four,  became  a  member  of  the  legal 
fraternity,  but  as  to  what  cases  he  won  or  lost  in 
this  new  field  of  contention  the  records  of  the 
Colony  are  silent  and  nothing  more  is  said  con- 
cerning him  until  his  temper  boiled  over  during 
the  May  session  of  the  General  Assembly  in  1715. 
The  following  from  the  record  shows  what  hap- 
pened on  that  occasion : 

Capt.  Joseph  Wadsworth  being  brought  to  the  bar  of 
the  Assembly,  to  be  examined  upon  the  discourse  he 
made  May  I7th,  in  the  Assembly  of  both  Houses,  being 
publick  upon  the  hearing  of  petitions,  which  was  re- 


The  Man  371 

sented  as  of  a  seditious  nature  and  tendency,  as  declar- 
ing against  the  validity  of  the  acts  of  this  Assembly 
which  were  passed  by  the  Houses  separate,  for  their 
inconsistency  with  our  charter,  and  behaving  himself 
with  due  submission  declared,  that  he  thought  what 
he  said  had  not  such  an  aspect,  and  that  he  was  far 
from  intending  to  insinuate  any  such  matter;  but  if 
through  inadvertency  his  words  had  such  a  tendency, 
he  readily  acknowledged  his  offense  and  concern  that 
what  he  had  spoken  had  given  any  offence  to  the 
Assembly,  whose  constitution  and  proceedings  he  had 
no  intention  to  reflect  upon:  Resolved  thereupon,  that 
the  said  Capt.  Wadsworth  acknowledge  and  consent  to 
the  following  confession,  viz: 

I  do  sincerely  profess  that  in  my  discourse  yester- 
day, in  the  hearing  of  both  Houses  when  the  Assembly 
was  publick,  (and  upon  the  hearing  of  a  petition,)  re- 
lating to  the  constitution  and  power  of  this  Assembly, 
as  to  the  manner  of  their  passing  of  acts  according  to 
our  charter,  I  had  no  design  to  reflect  upon  or  expose 
the  proceedings  of  the  Houses  of  the  said  Assembly  in 
their  passing  of  their  acts  separately.  If  what  I  said 
had  any  tendency  thereunto,  it  was  more  than  I  in- 
tended or  perceived;  and  I  am  heartily  sorry  that  what 
I  said  was  of  any  such  tendency  as  to  give  offence  to 
this  Assembly,  for  which,  as  for  the  charter,  I  had  a 
great  regard  and  honour. 

Resolved,  That  this  acknowledgment  shall  be  read 
in  the  hearing  of  both  Houses,  the  doors  being  open, 
and  that  after  the  reading  thereof,  the  said  Capt.  Wads- 
worth  publickly  own  the  same,  and  a  proper  admo- 
nition (be)  given  him,  and  thereupon  his  offence 
passed  by. 

The    confession   above   was   accordingly    read   in   the 


372  Wadswarth 

hearing  of  both  Houses  and  acknowledged  by  the  said 
Wadsworth,  and  an  admonition  given  him  upon  the 
same  by  the  Honble  the  Governour.1 

Further  on  in  the  proceedings  of  this  session 
those  who  consult  the  Colonial  Records  will  find 
a  paragraph  which  fixes  beyond  a  doubt  the  name 
of  the  man  who  secured  and  preserved  the  Char- 
ter when  Andros  visited  Hartford,  while  the  ac- 
tion taken  by  the  Upper  House  in  connection 
with  the  payment  for  "faithful  and  good  serv- 
ices" shows  that  its  members  were  still  smarting 
under  the  remarks  of  the  turbulent  old  warrior  or 
that  they  did  not  consider  the  admonition  of 
Governor  Saltonstall  severe  enough.  The  follow- 
ing is  the  entry  referred  to  and  a  few  of  the  notes 
printed  in  connection  with  it  in  the  fifth  volume 
of  the  Colonial  Records: 

Upon  consideration  of  the  faithful  and  good  service 
of  Capt.  Joseph  Wadsworth,  of  Hartford,  especially 
in  securing  the  Duplicate  Charter,  of  this  Colony  in  a 
very  troublesome  season  when  our  constitution  was 
struck  at,  and  in  safely  keeping  and  preserving  the 
same  ever  since  unto  this  day:  This  Assembly  do,  as 
a  token  of  their  grateful  resentment  of  such  his  faith- 
ful and  good  service,  grant  him  out  of  the  Colony 
treasury  the  sum  of  twenty  shillings. 

'The  bill  to  bring  Capt.  Wadsworth  to  the  bar,  for 
his  disorderly  and  mutinous  speeches,  originated  in  the 
Upper  House.  It  was  at  first  negatived  in  the  Lower 
House,  but  after  a  conference  of  the  two  houses  con- 
curred with.  The  journal  of  the  Lower  House  informs 
us  that  the  admonition  was  a  gentle  one. 


The  Man  375 

This  bill  originated  in  the  Lower  House,  and,  as 
at  first  passed  there,  gave  Capt.  Wadsworth  four 
pounds:  the  Upper  House  negatived  it:  a  committee 
of  conference  was  appointed,  consisting  of  Mathew 
Allyn,  Roger  Wolcott,  and  John  Clark;  and  both  houses 
agreed  to  give  the  sum  named  in  the  text.  Finance  & 
Currency,  I.  82. 

Forty  four  years  afterwards,  Roger  Wolcott  wrote, 
for  President  Clap,  a  Memoir  relating  to  Connecticut, 
dated  July  I2th,  1759.  He  says  in  it,  "In  October,  1687, 
Sir  Edmund  Andros  came  to  Hartford.  The  assembly 
met  and  sat  late  at  night.  They  ordered  the  charters 
to  be  set  on  the  table,  and  unhappily,  or  happily,  all 
the  candles  were  snuffed  out  at  once,  and  when  they 
were  lighted,  the  charters  were  gone.  And  now,  Sir 
Edmund  being  in  town  and  the  charters  gone,  the 
secretary  closed  the  Colony  records  with  the  word 
Finis,  and  all  departed." 

In  1764,  Roger  Wolcott  gave  President  Stiles  this 
story,  as  the  latter  records  it  in  his  Itinerary,  II.  105, 
now  in  Yale  College  Library,  "Nath.  Stanly,  father 
of  late  Col.  Stanly,  took  one  of  the  Connecticut  char- 
ters, and  Mr.  Talcott,  late  Gov.  Talcott's  father,  took 
the  other,  from  Sir  Edmund  Andros  in  Hartford  meet- 
ing house, — the  lights  blown  out." 

Cyprian  Nichols  and  Ebenezer  Johnson,  who  were 
members  at  the  sesion  of  May,  1715,  were  also  mem- 
bers of  the  Assembly  in  June,  1687,  when  sundry  of 
the  Court  desired  that  the  patent  or  charter  might  be 
brought  into  the  court,  which  the  record  leaves  in  the 
box  on  the  table,  at  the  adjournment,  and  with  the 
key  in  the  box,  at  which  time,  perhaps,  the  original 
charter  was  taken  by  Messrs.  Stanly  and  Talcott  and 
concealed,  it  may  be,  by  Mr.  Leete.  Messrs.  Nichols 


376  Wadsworth 

and  Johnson  were  also  members  on  the  3ist  of  Octo- 
ber, 1687,  when  Sir  Edmund  Andros  assumed  the 
government,  and  the  incident  of  extinguishing  the 
lights  occurred,  and  the  duplicate  charter  was  secured 
by  Capt.  Wadsworth. 

After  this  incident,  Captain  Wadsworth's 
name  disappeared  from  the  Colonial  Records  un- 
til 1721,  when  a  son  of  Benjamin  Mtmn  filed  the 
following  affidavits  in  support  of  a  petition  for  a 
grant  of  land: 

"These  may  informe  ye  Honoured  General  Courte 
that  my  Hon'rd  Father  having  been  a  first  planter  of 
Hartford,  I  in  my  youth,  who  are  now  74  years  old, 
did  often  here  my  said  Father  say  that  those  Lots 
called  the  Soldier's  Field1  were  lots  granted  to  ye 
Pequoit  Soldiers  only,  and  that  for  their  good  service 
in  said  War.  Joseph  Wadsworth." 

"I  Thomas  Burr  of  Hartford  aged  75  years,  testify 
as  above  written,  that  I  heard  my  Father  say  as  afore- 
said, and  allso  remember  said  Mun  when  he  lived  in 
Hartford  and  often  heard  my  Father  and  other  Pequot 
soldiers  say  that  said  Mun  was  a  soldier  in  said  war 
with  them.  Thomas  Burr." 

The  following  reference  to  Captain  Wadsworth 
also  appears  in  the  Hartford  Town  Votes: 

1  Soldier's  Field  contained  about  fifteen  acres  on  the 
west  side  of  the  North  Meadow  creek.  The  lots  were 
chiefly  a  quarter  of  an  acre  each  and  were  granted  to 
soldiers  engaged  in  Indian  wars.  There  is  a  tradition 
that  it  was  once  an  Indian  camp  ground.  The  original 
owners  all  lived  on  the  north  side  and  were  few  or 
none  of  the  original  proprietors  of  the  town. 


The  Man  377 

Town  Meeting.    Dec.  20,  1720. 

Voted  that  Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth,  Captain  Aaron 
Cook  and  Lieutenant  John  Moakim  be  a  Commit- 
tee to  prosecute  in  Law  (in  behalf  of  this  Town)  and 
to  Eject  those  that  hold  and  Improve  the  Lands  on 
the  Town  Comon  on  the  East  Side  of  the  Great  River 
in  Hartford  without  Liberty  of  the  Town  and  to  Im- 
prove Councill  in  this  Law  for  that  out  of  the  Charges 
of  this  Town. 

Town  Meeting  Dec.  25,  1722.  Voted  That  Capt.  John 
Spalding,  Sargt.  John  Skinner  be  a  Comittee  to  at- 
tend Capt.  Jos.  Wadsworth  when  he  shall  them  desire 
with  a  Surveyoy  to  Lay  out  and  make  up  the  Comple- 
ment of  his  Lott  upon  the  Comon  bounded  North  on 
Symsbury  Road1 — according  to  the  agreement  and 
records  of  this  Town. 

The  record  of  Captain  Wadsworth's  public 
services  closes  with  a  meeting  of  the  Governor 
and  Council  at  Hartford  Aug.  16,  1726.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  report  of  the  proceedings : 

Present.    Hon.  Joseph  Talcott,  Gov. 
Roger  Wolcott,  Assistant. 
David  Goodrich,  Justice  of  Peace. 
Ozias  Pitkin,  Justice  of  Peace. 
Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth. 
Robert  Sanford. 

1  This  is  the  lot  referred  to  in  the  following  memo- 
randum which  was  found  in  the  box  at  the  Wadsworth 
Inn:  Land  in  Hartford  upon  Connoiticutt  belonging 
to  Lt.  Joseph  Wadsworth  and  his  heirs  for  ever.  One 
parcel  of  upland  which  he  exchanged  with  the  Town 
for  land  in  the  ox  pasture  and  leads  on  to  the  West 
Side  of  the  North  Branch  of  the  Mill  River  near  the 
road  that  goeth  or  leadeth  to  Symsbury  containing 
fifty  four  acres  recorded  Feb.  n,  1686. 

A  True  Copy  of  Record. 
Exam   Hz.  Wyllys,   Register. 

(Hezekiah  Wyllys  was  Town  Clerk  from  1705  to 
J732.) 


378  Wadsworth 

A  petition  signed  by  Nathaniel  Stanly,  Hezekiah 
Wyllys,  Joseph  Bigelow  and  other  proprietors  of  cer- 
tain wet  lands  lying  in  the  property  described  in  said 
petition  praying  that  a  commission  of  sewers  may  be 
granted  for  draining  said  wet  lands  was  read  and  voted 
that  a  commission  of  sewers  be  thereupon  granted. 

Voted  that  Messrs.  Thomas  Seymour,  John  Whiting 
and  Zoe  Seymour  of  Hartford  or  any  two  of  them  be 
commissioners  and  that  his  Honor  the  Governor  give 
them  commission  accordingly. 

Captain  Joseph  Wadsworth  according  to  Sav- 
age died  in  1730.  He  is  supposed  to  have  been 
buried  in  the  cemetery  corner  of  Main  and  Gold 
Streets,  Hartford,  but  there  is  no  gravestone  to 
his  memory. 

"Perhaps  in  this  neglected  spot  is  laid 

Some  heart  once  pregnant  with  celestial  fire; 
Hands  that  the  rod  of  empire  might  have  swayed, 

Or  waked  to  ecstasy  the  living  lyre. 
"Some  village  Hampden  that  with  dauntless  breast 

The  little  tyrant  of  his  fields  withstood, 
Some  mute  inglorious  Milton  here  may  rest, 

Some   Cromwell,  guiltless  of  his  country's  blood." 

His  will  was  approved  and  recorded  March  2, 
1730-1.  The  following  is  a  copy  of  it: 

"I,  Joseph  Wadsworth,  being  sick  and  weake  of 
bodie,  tho'  sound  in  my  understanding  and  memory, 
calling  to  mind  my  mortality,  that  I  may  settle  the 
estate  God  has  been  pleased  to  bestow  upon  me,  I  do 
make  and  ordain  these  to  be  my  last  Will  and  Testa- 
ment— Imprimis  I  give  my  soul  to  God  that  gave  it,  in 


The  Man  379 

hope  of  mercy  only  through  the  merits,  mediation  and 
intercession  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  and 
my  body  to  a  Christian  buriall  at  the  discretion  of  my 
Executor — and  as  to  "my  worldly  goods  I  dispose  of 
them  as  fqlloweth — first  my  Will  is  that  all  my  just 
debts  and  funeral  charges  shall  be  duly  paid,  and  hav- 
ing given  a  Joynture  in  full  satisfaction  to  my  loving 
wife  Majy,  I  proceed  to  bequeath  my  estate  to  my 
Children — and  do  give  to  my  son  Joseph  the  upper 
neck  lot  of  land  where  his  dwelling  house  stands,  the 
whole  of  it,  with  all  the  buildings,  orchards,  privileges 
and  appurtenances  belonging,  to  him  and  his  heires, 
forever — also  I  do  give  to  my  son  Joseph  and  his  heires 
forever  my  upper  Lot  in  the  Long  Meadow,  and  the 
five  acre  lot  that  I  bought  of  Capt.  Nathan  Gold — and 
the  four  acres  of  land  at  brother  Tallcotts  uper  lot, 
which  I  have  by  agreement  with  Brother  Tallcott — 
and  I  do  also  give  to  my  son  Joseph  all  my  land  in 
Coventry — this  I  give  to  him  beside  what  he  hath 
formerly  had  and  enjoyed  or  improved  of  my  estate. 

— Item.  I  do  give  unto  my  son  Jonathan  and  his 
heires  forever,  the  woodlot  buting  East  on  the  Road 
to  Windsor,  with  all  the  buildings  thereupon  standing, 
with  all  the  privileges  and  appurtenances  thereunto  be- 
longing— also  I  do  give  him  my  Neck  Lot  of  land 
lying  over  against  the  foresaid  Woodlot,  buting  West 
on  the  Road  leading  to  Windsor,  that  was  bought  of 
Thomas  Thomlinson — also  I  do  give  him  the  Lot  of 
Land  which  the  half  way  tree  stands  on  in  the  Long 
Meadow — these,  with  what  I  have  formerly  given  him, 
or  that  he  had  posest  and  enjoyed  that  was  my  estate, 
I  do  give  to  him  and  his  heires  forever. 

— Item.  I  do  give  to  my  son  Ichabod  to  the  Lower 
house  lot  so  called  that  buteth  West  on  the  highway, 


380  Wadsworth 

north  on  Joseph  Barnards  land,  and  with  the  Mansion 
house,  Barn,  and  all  the  privileges  and  appurtenances 
thereunto  belonging  or  any  way  appertaining — also  my 
lot  of  land  of  foure  acres  in  the  South  Meadow — also 
six  acres  of  land  in  the  Souldiers  Field,  bounding  south 
on  the  Richard  Goodman  land,  &c. — also  I  do  give  to 
him  my  three-acre  Lot  nigh  the  lower  end  of  sd. 
Meadow — all  of  which  I  do  give  to  him  and  his  heires 
forever,  together  with  whatsoever  he  hath  already 
posest  and  enjoyed — also  I  do  give  him  my  Woodlot  of 
sixty  acres  lying  on  the  West  side  the  Mill  River,  nigh 
the  road  leading  to  Symsbury, — and  I  order  Ichabod  to 
pay  to  Jonathan  forty  shillings  yearly  so  long  as  my 
wife  continues  my  widow,  and  my  Will  is  that  if  I  die 
before  my  present  Wife,  that  my  sons  aforenamed  do 
allow  to  her  the  improvement  of  all  such  lands  as  by 
Joynture  I  have  given  her  to  use,  according  to  the  true 
intent  of  sd  Instrument,  without  any  let  or  hindrance 
whatsoever — 

— Item.  I  do  give  to  my  three  grandchildren,  chil- 
dren of  my  daughter  Elizabeth  Marsh,  viz:  Jonathan 
Marsh,  Joseph  Marsh  and  Elisabeth  Marsh  ten  pounds, 
to  be  paid  to  them  as  they  come  to  Lawful  age,  each  of 
them  three  pounds  six  shillings  and  eightpence,  to  be 
paid  to  them  by  my  three  sons  Joseph,  Jonathan  and 
Ichabod,  their  heires,  executors  or  administrators,  in 
equal  parts — and  this  I  give  to  them  beside  what  I  gave 
their  Mother,  and  what  she  hath  had  of  my  estate 
formerly — 

— Item.  I  do  give  unto  my  daughter  Hannah  Cook 
ten  pounds,  beside  what  she  hath  formerly  had  of  my 
estate,  which  ten  pounds  shall  also  be  paid  to  her  or  her 
heires  by  my  three  sons  Joseph,  Jonathan  and  Ichabod, 
in  equal  parts,  within  one  yeare  after  my  Decease — 


The  Man  381 

And  I  so  appoint  my  son  Joseph  Wadsworth  to  be  my 
Executor  to  this  my  last  Will — and  I  do  hereby  revoke 
all  other  and  former  Wills  or  Will  by  me  made,  and  do 
declare  this  only  to  be  my  last  Will — In  Testimony 
whereof  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  Scale  this 
sixth  day  of  July,  in  the  yeare  of  our  Lord  one  thou- 
sand and  seven  hundred  and  twenty  three. 

Signed,  sealed  and  declared  to  be  my  last  Will  in  the 
presence  of 

Joseph  Talcott.  Joseph  Wadsworth,"  a  Scale. 

Joseph  Farnsworth.     March  2,  1730-1,  proved 

Mary  Farnsworth.        and  recorded; 

The  following  is  a  copy  of  the  inventory  of  his 
estate  filed  in  the  Probate  office  at  Hartford: 

March  24,  1730.     An  inventory  of  the  Estate  of  Cap- 
tain Joseph  Wadsworth  of  Hartford  Deceased. 

£  s.  d. 

I   Cow  and  Calf  £7       I   Old  Mare  £2  900 

I   Cross  Cut  Saw  and  handsaw  15   s.  part  of 

two  Great  Bibles  18  s.  I  13    o 

A  Corsey  coat  £3  a  Corsey  woscoat  ii  2s.  6d. 

I  old  plain  cloth  coat  12  s.  4  14    6 

I    pr   black    Drugit   breeches    £135.      i    old 

Great  Coat  8  s.     2  Woolen  Shirts  8s.  I  19    o 

I  pr  black  Woosted   stockin   53.     2  pr  old 

stockins    43.      i    old    Woscoat    &    2    pr 

breeches   9   s.   6   d.  o  18    6 

1  hat    15    s.     Woolen    shirt   £i.      i    pr   shoes 

2s.     i  pr  gloves  3  s.  6  d.     2  Muflin  Neck- 
cloth  33.  236 

2  Knives    i    s.     Tobacco   box   is.     a   pr   of 

spectacles    18   d.     2   great  chairs  3   s.     a 
small  chair   is.  076 

i  iron  pot  9  d.     2  old  barrels  3  d.     by  Bills 

of  credit  li   19   s.  6  d.  2  n     6 


382  Wadsworih 

Nine  pounds   interest   in   the   old   mill  900 

By  six  ounces  and  a  quarter  of  Silver 

By  note  of  Gillet  Addams 

In  the  Long  Meadow  four  acres  at  the  Gov'rs 

Lot  40  o  o 

2  lots  twenty  acres  £200  third  lot  five  acres 

£50  250  o  o 

Fourth  lot  twenty  acres  £120.  upland  five 

acres  £30  150  o  o 

More  upland  fifty  four  acres  £108  one  acre 

in  the  Long  Meadow  £6  114  o  o 

More  by  three  acres  £30  five  acres  in  the  Sol- 
dier's Field  £50  80  o  o 

Four  acres  in  the  South  Meadow  £40  Icha- 

bods  house  lot  ten  acres  £100  140  o  o 

Fifty  four  acres  in  the  woods  162    o    o 

This  above  aprisement  was  made  by  us 
the  subscribers 

Nathaniel  Marsh 
John   Cook. 

Added  in  Court 
by  a  bond  from 
Benjamin  Burr 
of  £15   16  s. 
whereof  £6  7d. 
is  received  by 
ye  aforesaid  Joseph 
Wadsworth  Dec. 


THE    TREE 


THE  TREE 


Residents  of  Hartford  whose  memories  run 
back  to  the  forties  or  early  fifties  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, recall  the  hollow  oak  standing  at  the  foot  of 
a  lawn  sloping  down  from  a  house  which  still  re- 
tained the  general  form  of  the  one  that  was  built 
in  1637,  by  William  Gibbons  for  George  Wyllys, 
the  first  English  owner  of  the  hillside.  One  of 
these  when  speaking  of  the  tree,  turned  to  the 
family  Bible  within  which  a  leaf  of  the  Charter 
Oak  was  still  preserved,  and  which  is  now  kept 
not  so  much  as  a  memento  of  the  oak  as  of  the 
mother  who  placed  it  there  the  day  that  the  old 
monarch  fell.  Another,  who  has  in  his  day  en- 
joyed the  highest  honors  that  the  State  can  con- 
fer upon  a  favorite  son,  enthusiastically  tells  how 
as  a  boy  he  frequently  had  his  head  in  the  hole 
where  the  charter  was  hid,  while  a  venerable  lady 
still  speaks  of  a  birthday  at  which  she  presided 
in  the  hollow  tree. 

The  following  description  of  the  Charter  Oak 
and  the  scenes  connected  with  its  fall  are  taken 
from  the  Stewart  manuscript  already  referred  to : 

"At  ten  minutes  before  one  o'clock,  in  the  morning 
of  the  twenty  first  of  August,  1856;  and  just  eight  and 


386  Wadsworth 

thirty  years  after  the  old  Charter  itself  has  passed 
away — passed  away  also  that  Tree  with  which  it  was 
associated — each  yielding  at  last,  and  after  a  good  old 
age,  to  Natures  law.  Beneath  a  wild  midnight  sky, 
from  whose  dense  mass,  the  moon  was  slowly  emerg- 
ing, and  when  the  wind,  which  had  been  long  violent, 
and  rough  with  the  falling  rain,  had  suddenly  veered 
from  the  south  and  east  to  the  northwest,  and  risen 
to  the  pitch  almost  of  a  hurricane,  the  oak  was  struck 
by  a  terrific  gust  and  its  trunk,  now  reduced  to  a  mere 
shell  of  a  few  inches,  yielded  at  last.  With  a  rustling 
of  the  foliage  that  was  unusual,  and  a  sharp,  crackling 
sound  it  broke  in  twain  about  six  feet  from  the  base — 
at  a  point  where  a  horizontal  fissure,  of  some  three  or 
four  feet  in  length,  had  within  a  few  weeks  slowly 
opened,  and  parted  the  trunk  to  a  width  of  from  one  to 
three  inches.  For  an  instant  reeling  convulsively  in  the 
air — as  witnessed  by  city  watchman  who  stood  within 
two  hundred  feet  of  it  at  the  time — then  swaying  to 
and  fro,  as  if  looking,  'like  Caesar,  after  he  received 
his  death-blow,  for  a  place  upon  which  to  fall  with 
dignity' — the  old  veteran  bowed  majestically,  in  its 
full  mantle  of  green,  to  the  fury  of  the  blast. 

"Strange  was  the  thought  which  at  once  forced  itself 
upon  my  mind,  on  looking,  as  I  did  immediately,  at 
the  mighty  ruin — that  with  a  shell  so  thin,  it  should 
have  stood  erect  so  long  and  support  its  huge  weight 
of  branches.  And  how  strange,  too,  that,  with  this 
trunk  sapless  and  spongy  upon  a  great  portion  of  its 
northern  side — and  drawing  sustenance,  almost  exclu- 
sively, from  its  southern  and  eastern  exterior — and 
there  were  many  interruptions  from  loss  of  bark  and 
to  an  extent  only  of  about  half  the  circumference  of 
the  tree — it  should  yet  have  been  capable  of  nourishing 


,#•**# 


The  Tree  389 

so  long,  and  in  such  remarkable  vigor,  its  massive 
boughs  and  heavy  foliage,  while  it  had  sent  forth  even 
during  the  last  spring  and  summer  of  its  life  hundreds 
of  fresh  twigs,  many  of  them  a  foot  in  length,  and 
scores  of  acorns,  new,  plump  and  beautiful. 

"But  for  years,  it  may  be  mentioned  in  this  connec- 
tion, as  proprietary  guardian  of  the  Tree,  I  had  taken 
the  best  possible  care  of  it,  occasionally  removing 
some  of  its  dead  and  superfluous  matter — and  from 
time  to  time,  as  I  discovered  any  orifices  either  in  its 
trunk  or  branches,  caused  them  to  be  carefully  cov- 
ered over  with  tin  or  zinc,  for  the  purpose  of  exclud- 
ing rain,  or  snow,  or  wasting  elements  of  any  kind. 
Upon  one  memorable  occasion,  for  example,  in  1852, 
when  the  Tree  was  accidentally  fired  by  a  torpedo 
thrown  in  by  some  thoughtless  boys,  not  from  the  mo- 
tive of  wanton  mischief,  but  for  the  purpose  simply 
of  hearing  a  Chinese  cracker  explode  in  so  noted  a 
receptacle,  there  was  an  opportunity  afforded  for  mak- 
ing extensive  repairs.  In  order  to  extinguish  the 
flames — which,  mingled  with  volumes  of  smoke,  poured 
out  of  a  large  opening  high  in  one  of  the  crotches  of 
the  tree — and  which,  for  a  long  time  baffled  the  efforts 
of  the  firemen,  who  to  a  man,  with  patriotic  zeal, 
rushed  to  save  the  old  'Defender  of  their  Liberty' — it 
became  necessary  to  cut  a  hole  in  the  trunk  larere 
enough  to  permit  one  of  the  men,  hose  in  hand,  to 
work  his  way  into  the  interior  of  the  tree — a  feat 
which  was  accomplished,  and  which  led  to  the  speedy 
extinguishing  of  the  fire. 

"The  thorough  cleaning  to  which  I  then  subjected 
the  interior  by  removing  the  spongy  wood,  and  decayed 
vegetable  matter,  resulted  in  a  remarkable  renovation 
of  the  old  oak.  It  put  forth  fresher  and  fuller  foliage, 


390  Wadsworfh 

than  it  had  done  before  for  many  years — bore  more 
acorns — and  down  to  but  a  short  period  before  its  fall, 
appeared  as  hale,  as  stalwart,  and  as  storm-defying  as 
ever.  At  this  time  the  hollow  in  the  tree  was  so  large 
that  a  fire  company  of  twenty-seven  men  stood  up  in  it 
together.  During  this  new  phase  of  its  life  a  swarm 
of  honey  bees — whose  presence  in  the  tree  was  un- 
known until  after  it  fell — settled  in  a  spacious  gap  in 
one  of  its  crotches — about  twenty  feet  from  the  ground. 
Disturbed  for  a  moment,  after  the  tree  had  fallen,  by 
a  stick  thrust  carelessly  into  their  midst  by  some  curi- 
ous boys,  they  suddenly  poured  out  from  their  illus- 
trious dwelling-place,  and  lodged  upon  a  young  maple, 
which  stood  a  few  feet  distant  from  the  Oak,  and  upon 
the  opposite  side  of  the  street.  But  almost  immediately 
swarming  again,  they  returned  to  their  old  quarters  in 
the  Tree  and  from  thence  were  securely  hived  by  Louis 
Wessing.  They  were  removed  to  a  cheerful  spot  in 
close  proximity  to  my  dwelling  and  are  known  and 
cherished  under  their  new  title  of  Charter  Oak  Bees. 
"The  fall  of  the  Oak  roused  the  patriotic  sentiments 
of  Hartford.  The  old  and  young  visited  the  hillside 
on  which  it  stood  for  so  many  years  and  hundreds 
urged  the  erection  of  a  monument  upon  the  place  to 
commemorate  alike  the  Charter,  the  Tree,  and  the 
Hero  who  rendered  it  so  conspicuous.  At  noon — a 
band  of  musicians  from  the  Colt  Armory  poured  forth 
touching  harmonies  over  the  fallen  patriarch — first,  in 
solemn  dirge  the  'Dead  March  in  Saul' — then  'Home, 
Sweet  Home;'  and  then  the  national  march  and  anthem 
of  'Hail  Columbia.'  At  sundown  the  bells  all  over  the 
city  of  Hartford  were  tolled  as  a  signal  mark  of  re- 
spect for  the  old  Defender  of  Connecticut  Liberty  in 
an  heroic  age  of  colonial  history — a  respect  which  was 


The  Tree  391 

heightened  and  deepened  soon,  by  the  display  upon  its 
stump  and  trunk  of  two  Flags  of  the  union,  draped 
appropriately  in  the  emblems  of  mourning.  Sad,  af- 
fecting tokens  these  were  indeed  of  the  universal  feel- 
ing that  'one  of  the  most  sacred  links  which  bind  these 
modern  days  to  the  irrevocable  past,  had  been  sud- 
denly sundered.' " 

A  daughter  of  Secretary  Wyllys,1  writing  from 
Hartford  to  Dr.  Holmes,  author  of  the  American 
Annals,  published  in  1805,  made  the  following 
reference  to  it: 

"The  venerable  tree,  which  concealed  the  Charter, 
stands  at  the  foot  of  Wyllys  Hill.  The  first  inhabitant 
of  that  name  found  it  standing  in  the  height  of  its 
glory.  Age  seems  to  have  curtailed  its  branches,  yet 
it  is  not  exceeded  in  the  heighth  of  its  coloring,  or 
richness  of  its  foliage.  The  cavity  which  was  the 
asylum  of  our  Charter,  was  near  the  roots  and  large 
enough  to  admit  a  child.  Within  the  space  of  eight 
years  that  cavity  has  closed,  as  if  it  had  fulfilled  the 
divine  purpose  for  which  it  had  been  reared." 

1  Mrs.  Anstes  Lee,  of  Wickford,  Rhode  Island,  de- 
scribing in  a  letter  a  visit  which  she  made  to  Hartford 
on  Election  Day,  1791,  states  the  fact  that  the  next 
day  she  took  tea  at  Colonel  Wyllys'  with  President 
Stiles  of  Yale  College  and  other  distinguished  indi- 
viduals, and  says:  "We  all  went  out  after  tea  to  see 
the  Charter  Oak,  and  stood  under  it.  I  felt  anxious 
to  stand  under  the  celebrated  old  tree,  where  the  old 
colony  charter  was  hid  by  the  ancestor  of  the  present 
occupant.  President  Stiles  gave  us  (we  standing 
around  him)  a  minute  and  detailed  account  of  all  the 
transactions  of  its  seizure  and  concealment.  His  man- 
ner was  very  eloquent,  and  the  narrative  was  precise 
and  particular,  and  it  made  a  deep  impression  on  me." 


392  Wadsworth 

Among  the  Charter  Oak  traditions  preserved 
in  Hartford  is  one  that  represents  the  Connecti- 
cut river  as  having,  at  a  very  ancient  period,  ex- 
panded in  the  form  of  a  lake  up  to  its  roots  and 
that  the  Indians  tied  their  canoes  to  its  trunk. 
Another  tradition  preserved  in  the  "Old  Colony 
Memorial"  states  that  during  the  settlement  of 
Hartford,  when  William  Gibbons  was  felling  the 
trees'  on  the  Wyllys  lot,  the  Indians  who  were 
hutted  near  him  below  the  hill,  begged  that  he 
spare  that  tree,  as  it  indicated  the  proper  season 
for  planting  their  corn.  It  was  their  rule,  the  In- 
dians said,  to  plant  the  corn  when  the  leaf  of  the 
oak  was  as  large  as  a  mouse's  ear.  This  incident 
has  been  commemorated  by  Mrs.  L.  H.  Sigour- 
ney  in  the  following  "Intercession  of  the  Indians 
for  the  Charter  Oak  of  Connecticut." 

Oh!  not  upon  that  mossy  trunk 

Let  the   dire  axe   descend, 
Nor  wreck  its  canopy  of  shade, 

So  long  the  red  man's  friend, — 
Nor  to  the  cold,  unpitying  winds 

Those  bannered  branches  give, — 
Smite  down  the  forest,  if  ye  will — 

But  let  its  monarch  live! 

For  far  away,  in  olden  time, 
When  here  the  red  deer  flew, — 

And  with  his  branching  antlers  swept 
In  showers,  the  morning  dew, — 


The  Tree  393 

Up,  like  a  solemn  seer  it  rose, 

By  hoary  years  unbent, 
Marking  the  seed-time,  and  the  frost 

Which  the  Great  Spirit  sent. 

The  planter  watched  its  tender  leaf, 

By  vernal  skies  unrolled, 
Before  his  golden  corn  he  placed 

Within   the  investing  mould, — 
And  tho'  our  fallen  fathers  sleep, 

Beneath  their  mounds  of  clay, 
To  us,  it  speaks  their  words  of  yore, — 

Shred  not  its  boughs  away. 

And  so,  the  white  men  spared  the  tree 

The  Indian's  prayer  to  bless, 
Not  dreaming  that  its  giant  arms 

Would  aid  their  own  distress, — 
Not  dreaming  that  its  grateful  breast 

Responsive  to  their  sigh, 
Would  like  a  nursing  mother  shield 

Their  germ  of  liberty. 

But  when  the  tyrant  Stuart  fled 

And  left  the  British  throne, 
And  stern  Sir  Edmund  Andros  found 

His  brief  dominion  gone, 
Out  laughed  the  Oak  and  o'er  its  leaves 

A  shivering  rapture  crept, 
To  tell  the  secret,  that  so  close 

Full  many  a  month  was  kept. 

Out  laughed  that  hoary  Oak,  and  op'd 

Its  bosom's  secret  cell, 
And  brought  the  entrusted  treasure  forth 

Which  it  had  guarded  well, — 


394  Wadsworth 

Not  like  that  pale,  perfidious  king 
Whose  soul  with  pain  was  wrung, 

To  give  the  Magna  Charta  birth 
When  England's  laws  were  young, — 

But  like  a  brave,  true-hearted  friend 

Who  loves  a  noble  deed, 
And  closest  clings  to  those  he  serves 

In  their  darkest  hour  of  need; 
For  this,  may  circling  centuries  bid 

Its  veins   with  vigour  swell, 
And  on  its  praise,  our  unborn  sons 

Like  us  delight  to   dwell. 

Mrs.  Sigourney  also  wrote  the  following  the 
day  after  the  tree  fell : 

Woe, — for  the  mighty  Tree! — 

The  monarch  of  the  plain, — 
The  storm  hath  reft  its  noble  heart, 

It  ne'er  shall  tower  again: — 
In  ruins  far  and  wide 

Its  giant  limbs  are  laid, — 
Like  some  strong  dynasty  of  earth 

Whose  nod  the  nations  sway'd. — 

Woe, — for  the  ancient  Oak! — 

Our  pilgrim-father's  pride, — 
That  shook  the  centuries  from  its  crown, 

And  flourished  when  they  died; — 
The  grass  flower  at  its  feet, 

Shall  quickening  Spring  restore, — 
But  healthful  dews,  or  nesting  bird 

Revisit  it  no  more. — 


The  Tree  395 


The  roaming  Indian  prized 

Its  canopy  of  shade, — 
And  bless'd  it  while  his  council-fire 

In  eddying  volumes  play'd; — 
He,  for  its  wisdom  sought, 

As  to  a  Delphic  shrine, — 
He  ask'd  it  when  to  plant  his  corn, 

And  waited  for  the  sign. — 

Yon  white-haired  man  sits  down 

Where  its   torn  branches  lie, 
And  tells  the  listening  boy  the  tale 

Of   threatened    Liberty, — 
How  tyrant  pomp  and  power 

Once  in  the  olden  time, 
Came  Brennus-like,  with  iron  tramp 

To  crush  this  infant  clime. 

And  how  that  brave  old  Oak 

Stood  forth  a  friend  indeed, 
And  spread  its  Egis  o'er  our  sires 

In  their  extremest  need, 
And  in  its  sacred  breast 

Their  perm  of  Freedom  bore, 
And  hid  their  life-blood  in  its  veins 

Until  the  blast  was  o'er. — 

Throngs  gathering  round  the  spot, 

Their  mornful  memories  weave, 
Even  children  in  strange  silence  stand, 

Unconscious  why  they  grieve, 
Or  for  their  casket  seek 

Some  relic  spray  to  glean, — 
Acorn,  or  precious  leaf  to  press 

Their  Bible  leaves  between. 


396  Wadsworth 

Was  there  no  other  prey, 

Oh  Storm!— that  thunder'd  by? — 
Wreaking  thy  vengeance  'neath  the  shroud 

Of  a  wild,  midnight  sky? — 
Was  there  no  kingly  Elm, 

Majestic,  broad  and  free, 
That  thou  must  thus  in  madness  smite 

Our  tutelary  tree? — 

Our  beacon  of  the  past, — 

Our  Chronicle  of  time, — 
Our  Mecca, — to  whose  greenwood  glade 

Come  feet  from  every  clime? — 
Hark! — to  the  echoing  dirge, 

In  measures  deep  and  slow, — 
While  on  the  breeze  our  banner  floats, 

Draped  in  the  weeds  of  woe. 

The  fair  ones  of  our  Vale, 

O'er  its  fallen  Guardian  sigh, — 
And   Elders,  with  prophetic  thought, 

Dark  auguries  descry; — 
Patriots  and  Sages  deign 

O'er  the  loved  wreck  to  bend, — 
And  in  the  funeral  of  the  Oak 

Lament  their  Country's  friend. 

George  D.  Prentice  also  added  these  lines  to 
the  scanty  store  of  Charter  Oak  literature: 

"Tree  of  the  olden  Time!  A  thousand  storms 
Have  hurried  through  thy  branches — centuries 
Have  set  their  signets  on  thy  trunk,  and  gone 
In  silence  o'er  thee,  like  the  moonlight  mists, 
That  move  at  evening  o'er  the  battlements 


The  Tree  397 

Of  the  eternal  mountain — and  yet  thou 

Shakest  thy  naked  banner  in  the  Heavens 

As  proudly  still  as  when  great  Freedom  first 

Stamped  thee  with  deathless  glory.     Monument 

Of  Nations  perished!    Since  thy  form  first  sprang 

From  its  green  throne  of  forest,  many  a  deep 

And  burning  tide  of  human  tears  has  flowed 

Down  to  the  Ocean  of  the  past — until 

Its  very  wave  is  bitterness — but  thou 

Art  reckless  still.     No  heart  has  ever  throbbed 

Beneath  thy  silent  breast — and  though  thy  sighs 

Have  mingled  with  the  night  storm,  they  were  not 

The  requiem  of  the  nations  that  have  gone 

Down  to  the  dust,  like  thy  own  withered  leaves 

Swept  by  the  autumn  tempests.     Ay,  "bloom  on," 

Tree  of  the  cloud  and  glen — gird  on  thy  strength — 

Yet  there  shall  come  a  time  when  thou  shalt  sleep 

Upon  thy  own  hill  court.     The  marshalled  storms 

Shall  seek  but  find  thee  not — and  the  proud  clime 

That  long  has  been  the  consecrated  home 

Of  liberty  and  thee,  shall  lie  so  erst 

In  silent  desolation.     Not  a  sound 

Shall  rise  from  all  its  confines,  save  the  moan 

Of  passing  winds,  the  cloud's  low  tone  of  fear, 

The  roar  of  stormy  waters,  and  the  deep 

And  fearful  murmuring  of  the  Earthquake's  voice." 

When  the  time  came  for  the  old  oak  to  sleep 
upon  its  "own  hill  court"  he  also  contributed  the 
following  to  the  columns  of  the  Louisville  Jour- 
nal: 

"The  telegraph  has  apprised  the  nation  of  the  fall 
of  this  celebrated  tree.  Its  history,  and  especially  the 


398  Wadsworth 

incident  which  consecrated  it  in  the  annals  of  freedom, 
are  familiar  to  every  school  boy.  Its  legend  has  struck 
root  into  the  national  heart,  and  will  flourish  there  in 
fadeless  verdure.  In  New  England,  upon  whose  stor- 
ied turf  it  now  lies  outstretched,  the  Charter  Oak  has 
been  a  household  word,  for  more  than  a  century  and  a 
half,  and  is  buried,  like  a  trilling  bird  in  the  bosom  of 
its  glorious  foliage  deep  in  the  earliest  and  sweetest 
recollections  of  every  child  of  the  pilgrim  land.  For 
nearly  two  hundred  years,  the  Charter  Oak  has  been 
the  sacred  trysting  place  of  patriotism,  to  the  sons  and 
daughters  of  New  England,  and  not  the  trysting  place 
of  patriotism  alone,  its  fall  has  crushed  along  with 
numerous  lofty  reminiscences,  a  thousand  gentler  mem- 
ories that  were  hidden  amidst  its  rich  and  silken  leaves, 
like  the  sunbeams. 

"We  vividly  remember  the  emotion  with  which  we 
revisited  the  Charter  Oak,  less  than  a  year  ago.  While 
a  resident  of  Hartford,  in  former  days,  the  Oak  was 
one  of  our  favorite  haunts.  It  seemed  to  us,  at  that 
period,  truly  a  tree  of  magic,  and  as  we  stood,  a  few 
short  months  ago,  by  its  dying  trunk  for  the  last  time, 
and  looked  up  from  the  treasured  memories  of  youth, 
into  its  old,  luxuriant,  laughing  wealth  of  foliage,  it 
seemed  a  tree  of  magic  still.  The  early  fascination  of 
the  spot  came  back  upon  us  with  overpowering  energy. 
Time  had  but  enriched  its  wondrous  enchantment.  It 
was  touched  with  an  unearthly  charm.  Beyond  its 
grana  historic  spell,  and  over  all  its  lighter  witchery,  it 
seemed  steeped,  to  its  leafy  summit,  in  that  sad,  un- 
defmable  softness,  which  Wordsworth  calls — 

"The  grace  of  forest  charms  decayed, 
And  pastoral  melancholy." 


The  Tree  399 

It  was  as  if  all  the  pure,  and  lovely,  and  beautiful 
thoughts  it  had  ever  sheltered  or  suggested,  had 
thronged  around  it,  and  were  shedding  their  veiled 
light  in  silence  upon  it  exhaling  life.  It  was  the  breath 
of  death,  perfumed  with  holiness  and  beauty.  It  was 
the  euthanasy  of  a  material  thing.  No  other  mere  in- 
animate object  ever  exercised  so  profound  and  vital  a 
charm  upon  our  nature.  We  left  its  hallowed  presence, 
with  a  heart  brimming  with  tears,  and  have  never 
looked  upon  it  since,  and  can  never  look  upon  it  again. 

"It  had  fulfilled  its  mission.  The  princely  tree,  like 
the  illustrious  patriots  who  grew  up  and  achieved  their 
deathless  names  in  its  shadow,  has  fallen  in  the  fullness 
of  years,  and  a  nation's  grateful  benediction.  May  the 
nation  be  perpetual!" 


One  night,   my  children,   from  the   North 

There  came  a  furious  blast; 
At  break  of  day  I  ventured  forth, 

And  near  the  cliff  I  pass'd. 
The  storm  had  fall'n  on  the  Oak 

And  struck  him  with  a  mighty  stroke, 
And  whirl'd,  and  whirl'd  him  far  away. 

— Wordsworth. 


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